Historic Day in Lima as Latin Judo Shines Bright at the Grand Prix

euronews (in English)

Historic Day in Lima as Latin Judo Shines Bright at the Grand Prix  The opening day of the first-ever Lima Judo Grand Prix brought unforgettable moments. Chile’s Mary Dee Vargas Ley claimed her nation’s first Grand Prix gold, while Brazil, France, and Israel also triumphed. Peru’s Brillith Gamarra made history with her country’s first-ever IJF World Tour medal.  READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/10/12/historic-day-in-lima-as-latin-judo-shines-bright-at-the-grand-prix  Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages

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00:00Welcome to Lima, the vibrant heart of Peru, a country known for its ancient cities and breathtaking landscapes.

00:08Lima now proudly hosts its first ever Judo Grand Prix at the Coliseo Eduardo Dibos,

00:14and with an action-packed opening day, the local crowd had plenty to cheer about.

00:19At under 48 kilograms, fresh off her Grand Prix silver in Qingdao,

00:23Mary D. Vargas Ley of Chile claimed her and her country's first ever Grand Prix gold,

00:28catching her opponent with an incredible change of direction.

00:36I love that these tournaments are in this region. For me, it's very amazing.

00:42It's my people. I mean, I am very proud to be Latin, and that's very, very beautiful for me.

00:49I think all Latins work so hard to be in the circuit, to be on the top level of Judo, and I want to represent that also.

00:57IOC member Dr. Paola Perretto was on hand to award the medals.

01:04It was a first Grand Prix final for Isaac Ashpiz in the under 60 kilograms category.

01:10With a closely fought contest, only a single yuko from Ashpiz would decide it.

01:14He was awarded his gold medal by Israel Judo Association president, Mr. Moshe Ponte.

01:20It was an all-Brazilian final in the under 52 kilograms, with Jessica Pereira taking on teammate Gabriela Conceisao.

01:28A yuko score from Pereira saw her take the gold.

01:31And a beautiful display of respect from the teammates.

01:37She was awarded her medal by Peruvian Judo Federation president, Mrs. Maria Martinez-Merciago.

01:44The under 66 kilogram category saw Valerio Acogli pushed to his limits in a contest that ran over five minutes into golden score.

01:52But a beautifully timed counter from Acogli gave him the score and the gold.

02:02I've wanted this medal for a long time.

02:04And all I could think about was that until time runs out, I have to fight to the end.

02:09The medals were awarded by IJF education and coaching director, Mr. Mohamed Meridja.

02:17There was an all-French final in the under 57 kilograms, with Amandine Bouchard fighting upperweight.

02:23But it was Faiza Mokdar who kept up the pressure to snatch a victory from the jaws of defeat.

02:28She was awarded the gold medal by Peruvian Olympic Committee board member, Mrs. Leila Chihuan.

02:33The home team opened their first Grand Prix with a fantastic display of Judo.

02:40And it was all smiles from the locals as Brilith Gamara made history to take the first IJF World Tour medal for Peruvian women.

02:55We'll see you tomorrow for Day 2.

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