Judoka Beatriz Souza wins first Brazilian gold in Paris
Brazilian sports secured its first gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with judoka Beatriz Souza's victory over Israeli Raz Hershko in the women’s +78kg final.
The victory was achieved in the first 30 seconds of the fight, when the Brazilian scored a wazari by knocking the Israeli down, in the midst of an attempt to apply an o-soto-gari-varrida to the outside of her opponent's leg, pushing her against her foot. With the Israeli down, the Brazilian opened the scoring.
With two warnings for lack of initiative, the fight continued with the Israeli almost landing a blow that could have evened the score. However, Souza managed to avoid touching the ground with her side or back.
The Brazilian then stayed focused, maintaining her advantage while the Israeli showed signs of fatigue.
The victory propelled Brazil to 18th place in the overall table, with a total of one gold, three silver, and three bronze medals.
Beatriz Rodrigues de Souza, 26, is ranked fifth in the world in the women’s +78kg category. Standing 1.78 meters tall and weighing 135 kg, she has earned two silver and four bronze medals at world championships.
