Kayla Harrison successfully defends her Olympic judo gold medal in Rio
American Kayla Harrison has successfully defended her Olympic judo title in the women’s 78-kilogram division, after beating France’s Audrey Tcheumeo in a tense final.
With just six seconds left, Harrison caught Tcheumeo’s arm in an armlock, and forced Tcheumeo to tap out in submission, automatically winning the contest.
Count it! @Judo_Kayla becomes the first American to win two gold medals in #judo. #Rio2016 https://t.co/072IpsJevN https://t.co/ud8SCSNaAH
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 11, 2016
Harrison’s coach, Jimmy Pedro, said Harrison’s achievement was enormous, given that there have been no repeat Olympic judo champions at Rio or at the previous games in London. Harrison was in commanding form throughout Thursday, winning her preliminary matches automatically after pinning her opponents down to the mat for 20 seconds; her first match lasted just 43 seconds.
Pedro said Harrison was “on fire” on Thursday and described her defense of her Olympic title as “epic.”
The women’s bronze medals were won by Brazil’s Mayra Aguiar and Slovenian Anamari Velensek.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com