Before the World Judo Championship kicks off in Doha, the capital city of Qatar, the global judo family gathered for the 2023 International Judo Federation Congress.

After much anticipation, the first day of the 2023 World Championship kicked off and local fans filled the stadium to witness a day filled with both high expectations and shocks.

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Double World Champion in the -48kg Tsunoda Natsumi arrives to defend her title for the second time in a row. He was in his usual unstoppable form throughout the day with both expected and new techniques.

In the final, she faced French superstar Shirine Boukli, who was on fire all day. Huge hip shots put the World’s Number One on a collision course with the double World Champion, a mouth-watering match for the entire judo world.

But no one seems to be able to stop Tsunoda. Tomoe-Nage and joins an elite club of triple world champions. An incredible achievement. The medals were presented by IJF President Marius Vizer.

Then Tsunoda said: Tomoe-Nage It’s my favorite technique, I’m very skilled at it. Everyone knows this about me, so everyone is getting ready to compete against me.

At -60kg, Spaniard Francisco Garrigos arrived in Doha to clearly prove a point. He shocked the world by beating clear favorite Takato Naohisa in the semi-finals.

The Olympic and four-time World Champion is shockingly dropped from this year’s tournament to the Spanish’s delight.

On the other side of the draw, the surprise package of the day was Dilshodbek Baratov from Uzbekistan. He appeared out of nowhere with an incredible performance and explosive judo.

A clever low attack made the Spanish sensation take his first world title. Great sportsmanship and then pure pleasure for Spain.

Otabek Umarov, Vice President of the Asian Olympic Council, presented the -60kg medals.

“The fight against Takato was in the semi-finals, so I only have one final left and I don’t know how many World Championship finals I’ll be in, so I had to give my 100%,” Garrigos said. watch.

Competitors from Russia and Belarus participate in the tournament with the tag of “Individual Neutral Athletes”. Ukraine removed its team from the event last week in protest.

But the main focus of the day was judo and as a result it was a great first day at the 2023 World Championships in Qatar, with fans eagerly waiting for the second day.