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| "I think today is a result of all of the support I have received up till this point. I have really given coach (Kosei) Inoue a hard time, so I am glad I could come through with this result today," Takato said. (Photo by=Mark Pickering IJF/ International Judo Federation) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] Judoka Naohisa Takato won Japan's first gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday, beating Taiwan's Yang Yung-wei in the men's 60-kilogram final. Kyodo reported that his victory came shortly after fellow judoka Funa Tonaki earned Japan's first medal of the games, a silver, after falling to Distria Krasniqi of Kosovo in the women's 48-kg final.
Takato, the Rio de Janeiro Olympic bronze medalist, beat Yang in golden score extra time at Nippon Budokan after the Taiwanese were disqualified for committing his third foul. Having battled through two exhausting contests on his way to the gold-medal match, Takato stuck to a disciplined, if cautious, fight plan to win a somewhat anticlimactic final. In the end, all three of his victories from the quarterfinals and on came in sudden-death golden scores.
The three-time world champion said the significance of winning Japan's first gold medal had yet to hit home. Earlier, he defeated Georgian Lukhumi Chkhvimiani in extra time in the quarterfinals, when the reigning world champion committed a match-deciding third foul. With his landmark victory taking place behind closed doors at Nippon Budokan, Takato thanked fans watching at home for their support.
