Lightweight (≤73 kilograms), Men

After five bronze medals in the first five judo events in Rio, two-time World Champion Shohei Ono clinched Japan’s first judo gold of the Games and the first men’s gold for his country since 2008 . He dominated the 73kg finalist Rüstəm Orucov of Azerbaijan winning gold after scoring a Waza-ari (half point) after 1:44 min and the decisive Ippon (full point) after 3:15 min with a successful Ko-uchi-makikomi (minor inner leg reap). A relatively small judoka at 1.70 metres, compared to Orucov’s 1.80 metres for example, Ono was World Champion in 2013 and 2015 and probably one of the sport’s strongest favorites in Rio. Earlier in his career, Ono was involved in an act of violence against younger students at the Tenri University’s judo club, leading to a temporary suspension and preventing him from defending his world title in 2014. But in Rio, Ono was in impressive form.

On his way to the gold medal, Ono won four of five bouts by Ippon including a win against the veteran and surprise bronze medalist Dirk Van Tichelt from Belgium. Only the other bronze medalist, Georgia’s Lasha Shavdatuashvili, the London 2012 gold medalist in the 66 kg division, resisted the full five minutes, although Ono scored a Waza-ari after just 37 seconds. First seeded Korean An Chang-Rim was eliminated early by Van Tichelt.