Judo Day 3 Preview: Judokas from Azerbaijan seek gold

Judo Day 3 Preview: Judokas from Azerbaijan seek gold



The fifth and sixth gold medals of the Judo competitions will be handed out on day three in the Men's -73kg and Women's -57kg. Here are the athletes to look out for:

Men's -73kg:

Belgium's Dirk van Tichelt was the gold medalist of the 2008 European Championships and is considered one of the top judokas in the world. He has moved to the -73kg division from the -66kg division in 2003 and is currently rank second in the world.

World No. 1 Elnur Mammadli from Azerbaijan was the European champion in 2006 and the second-place finisher at the World Championships in 2007. He won the 2008 Super World Cup title in Hamburg in February.

As one of the top judokas in Tajikistan in the -73 category, Rasul Bokiev of Tajikistan claimed his Olympic berth by finishing third at the 2007 World Judo Championships in Rio de Janeiro. He is ranked No. 3 in the world.

Wang Ki-chun, a 19-year-old judoka from the Republic of Korea, beat 2004 Athens champion Lee Won-hee in the 2007 World Championships and may be poised to improve on that impressive performance with Olympic gold.

Women's -57 kg

World No. 1 Sabrina Filzmoser from Austria became European Champion in 2008 after three consecutive third-place finishes. She'll be challenged by World No. 2 Barbara Harel of France, who will be aiming for a podium finish in Beijing after fifth- and seventh-place finishes in Sydney and Athens.

Isabel Fernández from Spain won silver at the 2007 world championships and is a six-time European champion. She won gold in Sydney and earned Olympic bronze in 1996.

Kifayat Gasimova from Azerbaijan was the third place finisher at the 2007 and 2008 European Judo Championships bronze. Her first place finish at the 2008 World Cup Sofia confirms her place among the division's top contenders.