(BEIJING, August 13) -- Thirty-two of the world's top judoka will compete for the gold medal in Men's -100 kg on August 14, led by Olympic champion Suzuki Kenji of Japan who has stepped down a weight division for the Beijing Games.
Vera Moskalyuk of Russia and Heide Wollert of Germany are likely to be the main contenders for gold in Women's -78 kg.
Men's -100kg
Suzuki is the only participant to win a triple world title, including the World Junior Title in 1998, World Title in 2003 and the Olympic gold medal at Athens 2004. Suzuki's most recent performances include gold at the 2008 Japanese National Championship in Fukuoka and Bronze in the 2008 World Cup in Prague.
Challenging him will be Henk Grol of the Netherlands. Grol has had a strong year in 2008, winning 22 out of his 24 matches internationally, but is a relative newcomer to the sport. The Dutch judoka won gold at the 2008 European championships in Lisbon, the 2008 World Cup in Vienna and the 2008 Super World Cup in Hamburg and will be making his Olympic debut in Beijing.
Luciano Correa enters the competition as the 2007 world champion. While he won gold at the 2008 World Cup in Belo Horizonte, Brazil and the 2008 New York Open, he has rarely competed at the international level.
Arik Zeevi of Israel is competing in his fourth Olympic Games. He won bronze at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and recently won gold at the 2008 World Cup in Prague and Bronze at the European championships in Lisbon. ZEEVI has won 20 out of 25 matches in 2008.
Frederic Demontfaucon of France has stepped up a weight division from -90kg and has previously competed in two Olympic Games, winning bronze at Sydney 2000 and placing ninth at Athens 2004.
Women's -78kg
Vera Moskalyuk of Russia is one of two strong contenders for the gold medal. She finished a low ninth at Athens 2004 but has since recorded consistently strong results in major competitions, including the 2006 European Championships and three Super World Cups. Heide Wollert of Germany won the European championships in Lisbon, Portugal in 2008, and finished first on two occasions at the Super World Cup in Hamburg, Germany (2005 and 2006). Both wins came in the -70kg category. Moskalyuk and Wollert have met four times since 2007, recording two wins apiece.
Esther San Miguel, 33, is one of the oldest competitors in this weight category, and a three-time Olympian. While San Miguel finished out of medal contention at Athens 2004 (15th), she has won four World Cup events in the last four years. She suffered a knee injury in 2007 but has made a full recovery.
Lucia Morico of Italy won bronze in this category at Athens 2004. Morico has since finished second at the World Cup event in Rome in 2006, losing to San Miguel, and finished third at the European championships in Rotterdam in 2005, the World Cup in Lisbon in 2007, and the Super World Cup in Hamburg the same year.
Nakazawa Sae of Japan will make her Olympic Games debut in Beijing. Nakazawa won the World Cup in Budapest in 2006, the Asian championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 2005 and the Doha 2006 Asian Games.
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