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Ulaanbaatar Judo Grand Slam: The Feats of Lee Joonhwan

The second day of the Judo Grand Slam in Ulaanbaatar started with a performance. Dances and music typical of the country were performed.

Nabekura Nami: Full range of judo technique used

They saw a victory by Nabekura Nami in the weight category up to 63 kilograms. She received the gold medal from judo entrepreneur and supporter Namsrai Batsaikhan.

“My favourite throw is the uchi-mata, but today my ashi waza, ko uchi gari and ko soto gari made their impact. I was able to show variations of the techniques. It was a good experience,” the Japanese said.

Olympic champion on the mat – but Lee surprises again

Her compatriot Nagase Takanori, the reigning Olympic champion in the 81 kilogram weight category, was naturally one of the contenders for victory in Mongolia. The Japanese fought his way into the semi-finals, where he faced the young Korean Lee Joonhwan. Lee provided the surprise, defeating the Olympic champion and former

Silver for Austria

In the fight for gold the Korean met Shamil Borchashvili from Austria. Lee Joonhwan also defeated the Olympic bronze medallist. The 20-year-old was THE discovery of the day, but he was not completely unknown either, because Lee already won the Grand Slam in Tbilisi three weeks ago. The Korean is 33rd in the world ranking list, at the Grand Slam he showed that he can compete with the world’s best. The award ceremony was performed by the mayor of Ulan Bator, Dolgorsuren Sumiyabazar.

“I am very grateful that so many people cheered me on. I will do what I can to meet future expectations,” said Lee Joonhwan.

There was silver for the organising Mongolian federation in the men’s up to 73 kilograms on the second day of the Judo Grand Slam. Tsogtbaatar Tsend-Ochir was only defeated in the final, losing to Makhmadbek Makhmadbekov.

This Sunday, among others, the heavyweights will be on the mat in Ulan Bator.

By Klaus