The path to the finale

In Budapest, the personal tournament of the World Judo championship ended. Ahead of the team championship, where Russian judokas will try to take medals, but preliminary results can already be summed up. Athletes from our country have three gold and two bronze medals – this is the second result at the tournament in Hungary after the Japanese national team and the best for Russian judo in the history of the world championships.

On Thursday, Inal Tasoev, who won gold in the category over 100 kg, was the third champion from Russia in Budapest. The 27-year-old judoka already became the world champion-in 2023, after a scandalous fight with Teddy Riner, he initially received silver, but later the International Judo Federation (IJF) recognized the judicial mistake, and the Russian was awarded the second gold medal. Now our judoka has become the sole owner of gold.

Inal Tasoev and Teddy Riner / Photo: © Nurphoto / Contributor / Nurphoto / Gettyimages.ru

Tasoev’s path to the final did not turn out to be simple. In the third round, he had to deal with the winner of the Olympics-2024 Muzaffarbek Turoboev from Uzbekistan. In the quarterfinals, Tasoev defeated the Russian Tamerlana Bashaev, who took the gaming 2020 in Tokyo, as well as silver and bronze medals of the world championships. In the semifinal confrontation, another winner of the Olympics in Paris Temur Rakhimov from Tajikistan was defeated.

Closed revenge

Another titled athlete was the rival of the Russian judoka at the final-the world champion, Europe and the silver medalist of the Olympiad-2020 Guram Tushishvili from Georgia. This confrontation had its own story-in the final of the European Championship-2024, the debris of heavyweights ended in the victory of our judoka. A year later, Inal again retained the title of European champion, but in the fight against another opponent. And in the final of the World Cup-2025, Georgians got the opportunity to take revenge.

At the beginning of the fight, both judokas earned a remark for passivity, and the first effective action was closer to the equator of the duel by the judges recorded a representative of Georgia, who received an assessment of Yuko for a successful counterattack. The native of Vladikavkaz answered with his throw, receiving Vadza-Ary.

Open the video

Unfortunately, it did not work out to develop success in the stalls: an attempt to make a pain in the hand did not reach a logical conclusion. The Georgian athlete needed to take risks at the final moment, but Inal correctly neutralized all the opponent’s attempts to conduct an effective attack. When it ended, Tasoev kissed the defeated opponent on his forehead – the struggle was over, there was nothing more to share his opponents.

“We will first place”

– Inal is usually very bright. At this tournament, he rather acted more reliably than brightly. In the final, I had no doubt, in fact. Even when he made a mistake on his technical action. There were two more minutes left, and I knew that he would definitely create a little miracle. So he did it. So a well -deserved, earned victory, ”said Match TV, personal coach of the two -time world champion Mikhail Rakhlin.

The champion itself, it seems, was more happy not to be his second victory at the world championships, but to the third gold for Russian athletes in Budapest. Indeed, after this success, the Russians surpassed the achievement of 2001, when our country had only three gold in the team standings. Now the new landmark for the future is three gold and two bronzes. Although it is likely that according to the results of the team championship won medals in a single tournament, there will be even more.

– I immediately showed Murat Khabachirov three fingers, I showed that our country has three gold. This is a historical achievement. Congratulations to all the guys. I want to say that this is only the beginning, we will try and will become even better. Soon, at the main competitions, we will be in the first place. The number 1 is what I love and I can’t, ”Tasoev said on the program“ Everything for the Match! ” On the TV channel “Match TV”.

On Friday in Hungary, team competitions will be held as part of the World Cup. See the direct broadcast of the tournament on the TV channels “Match TV” (from 18:55) and “Match! Fighter ”(from 19:30), as well as on Matchtv.ru and Sportbox.ru sites.