French fans went wild after French Judoka Émilie Andéol made an amazing victory in Rio, beating long-time winner Idalys Ortiz of Cuba in the +78kg category of Judo last week, claiming France’s first gold medal in the Judo competition.
Previously Andéol won gold at the 2015 European Judo Championships in Baku, but her defeat of Oritz, the reigning Judo champion, came as a surprise to many. In the final round of battle, Andéol and Oritz went into a golden score period, and battled for an extra three minutes. Then Andéol won by holding Oritz pinned to the ground for 20 seconds, which earned her an ippon, which is the highest score in Judo.
Not long after, France’s Teddy Riner won gold in the Men’s over 100 kg Judo competition as well, making it a great day to be on the French team!
Andéol’s joy at winning gold was contagious as she leapt around hugging her family and France celebrated yet another win:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWHZueSvKao&w=560&h=315]
