Georgia wins silver at Junior Judo World Championships

Georgia’s national junior judo team won silver at the 2015 World Championships final in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday after succumbing to Japan in the tournament’s team event.

The Japanese squad easily overcame the Georgian judokas’ resistance with a 5-0 score to retain the title of world champions following their 2014 victory in the United States.

The five-day junior team contest featured 14 national teams of five competitors each.

Georgia was handicapped in the final, missing their leading judokas Beka Gviniashvili – crowned world champion in the individual competition on Monday – and Guram Tushishvili through injuries.

The Georgian team reached the final after eliminating Egypt in the semi-final match 4-1, while Japan were made to work hard to advance past Uzbekistan but ultimately claimed both men’s and women’s titles.

The silver medal of the team competition was the fifth collected by Georgian male and female judokas at the 2015 championship; with Gviniashvili’s personal gold, silver medals went to Tamaz Kirakozashvili and Mariam Janashvili and a bronze was won by Irakli Kupatadze.

Russia and Belarus finished joint third at the World Championships.