The French Clarisse Agbégnénou, back at the Worlds after maternity leave, won a sixth title of world judo champion, Wednesday in Doha, in the -63 kg category.
The 30-year-old double Olympic champion from Tokyo beat Slovenian Andreja Leski, 12th in the world, by ippon in the final. Clarisse Agbégnénou thus regains her crown, barely eleven months after giving birth to her first child.
A medal for his daughter
“I couldn’t have dreamed of better, I worked very, very hard to get there”she said on the team channel. “I still have things to work on for Paris-2024, but I’m proud, it’s the most difficult title, I’ve worked a lot to get there, and cried a lot too”. “I told my daughter that I would put the medal around her neck, thing promised thing due”she smiled.
Her day of competition began with a victory in the first round against the Serbian Anja Obradovic, 30th in the world, after 3 minutes 45 minutes of combat. She then won by ippon in overtime against the Cuban Maylin Del Toro Carvajal, fighting a close fight against the 16th in the world and recent finalist of the Grand Slam of Tel Aviv.
In the third round, against the Israeli Gili Sharir, 7th in the world and winner of the Grand Slam in Paris in early February, she was again forced into extra time, before winning by waza-ari.
The Return of the Boss
She then rose to power in the quarter-finals, dominating the Canadian Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard, world number 2 and reigning vice-world champion by ippon, despite being frightened during a ground combat phase.
The picture having cleared up after the early elimination of the two Japanese women, the Frenchwoman, present in Qatar with her daughter, found herself facing in the semi-final the Austrian Lubjana Piovesana, 60th in the world, whom she dominated by meticulously ippon.
Absent from the last edition of the Worlds due to maternity leave, Agbégnénou signed in Qatar her big comeback on the planetary scene, in preparation for the Olympic Games at home in a little over a year.
Since her recovery, the double Olympic champion in Tokyo, now six-time world champion, had only played two competitions, the first with her club at the end of 2022, then the Grand Slam in Tel Aviv last February.
Before the Worlds, she had considered herself capable of going for a medal, while declaring that she was not yet at 100% of her abilities. “I think definitely there is a psychological aspect. The boss is back and it has everyone worried”said his coach Ludovic Delacotte, questioned after his qualification for the final.
