Japan's Tanaka, Omori Win Gold in World Judo Debut

Baku, Oct. 6 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Ryuga Tanaka and Akari Omori won the men's 73-kilogram and women's 57 kg categories at the 2026 World Judo Championships on Tuesday, securing gold in their world championship debut.

Tanaka, 22, advanced through the tournament held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, beating opponents including world No. 1 Muhiddin Asadulloev of Tajikistan to reach the final.

The final went into golden score, ending with Tanaka defeating Makhmadbek Makhmadbekov of the United Arab Emirates to become the first Japanese judo athlete to secure the category's title since two-time Olympic gold medalist Shohei Ono in 2019.

"There had been times I was a bit too careful," Tanaka said. "This time, I focused on not letting my opponents use their techniques on me."

His older brother, Ryoma, won the 66 kg category in the 2024 World Judo Championships. "I'm happy that I also won," the younger Tanaka said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]