[Commentary] Gold medal in the same event for the second consecutive time; Medal at first Olympics: "Women's Freestyle Wrestling 50kg Class" Gold Medal - Akari Fujinami

In the women's freestyle wrestling 53kg class, Akari Fujinami won the gold medal by defeating Lucia Yamilet Yepes Guzman of Ecuador in the final. *Top image source/Getty Images

KING GEAR Editorial Department | 2024/08/27

sports / SPORTS REPORTS

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Source: Getty Images

Making his Olympic debut, Fujinami won his first-round match by pinfall against Dominic Parrish, the US representative and 2022 world champion. He also won his second-round match by pinfall against Batkhyag Khuran of Mongolia, and in the semi-finals, he defeated Pan Qianyu of China, the silver medalist from the previous tournament, 10-0. Fujinami advanced with overwhelming strength and then shone on the final stage.

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Source: Getty Images

Against the formidable world number one ranked opponent, he didn't let up on his attack, accumulating points and ultimately winning the match with a 10-0 technical superiority victory at 3 minutes and 37 seconds into the second half. This marks Japan's second consecutive gold medal in this weight class in this event.

<Paris Olympics results>
Round 1:Dominic Parish / ○6-0
Round 2:Batovyag Furan / ○8-2
Semifinals:Pan Kiangyu / ○10-0
final:Lucia Yamileth Yepes Guzman / ○10-0

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Born in 2003, Fujinami began competing in wrestling at the age of four, influenced by his father who ran a wrestling club. Since then, he has dedicated himself to wrestling, attending the high school where his father was the coach, and later becoming a coach at Nippon Sport Science University when Fujinami enrolled there. It was all for the sake of the Olympics. His father, who was in his corner, was the one who watched from closest to him as he won the gold medal on the Olympic stage, a dream he had long cherished.

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Source: Getty Images

Fujinami has never lost an official match since his second year of junior high school, and his winning streak, including his record in Paris, is 137. He is a young champion at just 20 years old. Expectations are high for his performance at the Los Angeles Olympics in four years.

A summary of the achievements of Japanese medalists at the Paris Olympics and the most notable battles (Day 17 of the tournament)

[Commentary] Despite winning a medal, Yui Suzaki, who won the bronze medal in the women's freestyle 50kg wrestling event, showed signs of disappointment.