Georgian judoka earns first place in world rankings
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A Georgian judoka has earned first place in world rankings after winning gold at the Paris Grand Slam on Sunday.
Today it was discovered Avtandil Tchrikishvili now topped unofficial world judo ratings following his 81kg victory at the Paris Grand Slam.
Tchrikishvili ranked higher than the previous leader of the Senior World Ranking List, France's Teddy Riner, with a new points total of 3340.
The two athletes competed in separate 81kg and 100kg categories however the respective total points scored by the Georgian wrestler put him ahead of the French judoka, who had 3000 points.
Tchrikishvili defeated Bulgaria's Ivaylo Ivanov in the 81kg final of the Grand Slam competition. Photo by IJF Media/G. Sabau.
The new Grand Slam champion also enjoyed the position of the world's top scoring judoka last year.
The points-based list of the top 50 athletes featured five other Georgian wrestlers, with Varlam Liparteliani (90kg) following closest in sixth position overall and second in his respective weight category.
The full International Judo Federation Senior World Ranking Lists for individual weight categories can be viewed here.
Tchrikishvili was one of the two judokas from the Georgian national team who claimed medals at the Paris competition. Liparteliani won bronze in the 90kg category at the Grand Slam event.
Last year Tchrikishvili won the 2014 Judo World Championships in Russia and has twice been named Georgia's sportsperson of the year.
Georgian athletes are making their mark in the judo arena and impressing the world with their skills in contact sports. A Georgian judoka has won a gold medal at the most prestigious European judo competition – the Paris Grand Slam.
Lasha Shavdatuashvili (73kg) - Georgian Olympic Champion of 2012 - triumphed at the Almaty Grand Prix, becoming the first Georgian to win gold at the tournament that started on May 13.
Another Georgian athlete has won gold at a prestigious International Judo Federation (IJF) competition in Kazakhstan. Georgia’s big man Adam Okruashvili (+100kg) triumphed at the Almaty Grand Prix, becoming the second Georgian to win gold at the tournament.
Georgian athletes are among the world’s top judokas participating in the World Judo Masters in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg. Having won the battle in their weight categories, Georgia now has three gold, one silver and one bronze medals.