It had been more than a year and a half since Arthur Margelidon had stood on the podium of a Judo Grand Slam. The Canadian remedied the situation brilliantly on Saturday, being decorated with silver at the end of an almost faultless run in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Posted at 4:27 p.m.
Margelidon found himself in hostile territory in the under 73kg grand final, where he faced Azeri Hidayat Heydarov, third in the IJF world rankings. However, it was the judoka from Canada who was the first to stand out in this confrontation, quickly taking control of the tatami.
He launched numerous attacks in the first two minutes of the fight, leaving no room for the tournament’s second seed, unresponsive to his rival’s tactics.
The tide turned for the crowd favorite in an instant, however, when he took advantage of a breach in Margelidon’s defense to knock him to the ground and win by ippon.
“He caught me on an action and I got caught. I dominated the fight, I felt that I had the upper hand and that the gold medal was within my reach. Unfortunately, I made just one small mistake and he didn’t miss his chance,” analyzed the Quebecer at the end of the final.
This false step will have been the only one of the day for Margelidon who has faced his share of adversity in this tournament. After two victories acquired by ippon against the Spaniard Jose Antonio Aranda Olalla and the Azeri Vusal Galandarzade, the Canadian had an appointment with the Georgian Lasha Shavdatuashvili in the quarter-finals.
The 29-year-old athlete showed no complex against the world number two and 2021 world champion, whom he defeated by waza-ari after four minutes of regulation time.
“He had already beaten me twice before, including at the Tokyo Games, but I knew he was within my reach,” commented Margelidon. I had a good strategy, I managed to score early in the fight and keep my cool until the end to win. It was a very satisfying victory and it’s good for morale! »
The task was not easier in the next round, when he had to draw on his reserves to overcome the Uzbek Murodjon Yuldoshev, ninth in the world. An ippon executed in the second minute of overtime gave the victory to the Maple Leaf athlete, who at the same time obtained his ticket for the ultimate duel.
“Gone there, there is nothing easy, he continued. I had beaten him before and used the same game plan to defeat him again. I dominated without putting myself in danger and I attacked at the right time. It was perfect from start to finish. »
Despite the many good shots, the bitterness of the defeat in the final was still felt in the voice of Margelidon, who was aiming for nothing but the title in Baku. However, he admits that he will have several positive points on which to build to achieve his objective during his next outings.
“It feels good to find my bearings and make several good fights in a row. I had a few injuries in the last year, but I feel that I am more and more capable of imposing my judo, which proves that we are going in the right direction. On the other hand, the errors prove that there are also things to work on. Medals are always fun, but next time I want to finish with gold and I’ll work for it,” he concluded.
Only one other Canadian was in action on Saturday, Ontarian Mohab ElNahas. He had a quick exit at -81kg due to a first-round loss to Tajik Somon Makhmadbekov.
Members of the Canadian delegation present in the capital of Azerbaijan will return home in the coming days to begin their preparations for the Tokyo Grand Slam, which will take place on December 3 and 4, in Japan.