Judo An Changrim, Valuable Bronze Medal After Fierce Effort (Summary)

Half Victory Against Azerbaijan's Rustam Orujov
Fighting Hard in Every Match... Showing Focus Until the End to Achieve Results

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Third-generation Zainichi Korean judo athlete An Changrim (KH Group Philux) won a medal at the sacred site of Japanese judo. On the 26th, at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, he secured a half-point victory against Azerbaijan's Rustam Orujov in the men's 73kg bronze medal match. He successfully executed his signature seoi nage throw with 7 seconds remaining.

The bronze medal was a precious achievement earned despite exhaustion. On that day, An Changrim experienced the toughest challenges among the 73kg competitors. From the round of 32 to the semifinals, he engaged in golden score (overtime) battles. He faced his first opponent, Fabio Basile (Italy), the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic gold medalist. In the round of 16, he fought Uzbekistan's Kikmatillok Turaev, and in the quarterfinals, Israel's Tohar Butbul.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In every continued close match, An Changrim maintained his concentration until the end. However, in the semifinals, his stamina was completely depleted, and he ultimately lost by penalty to Georgia's Lasha Shavdatuashvili. Nevertheless, he composed himself for the final match and fought fiercely to claim his first-ever Olympic medal.

An Changrim was a promising talent who won the All Japan Student Championships in 2013 while he was a sophomore at Tsukuba University. He declined the Japanese Judo Federation's request for naturalization and moved to Korea in 2014 to wear the Taeguk mark. Although he failed to achieve his goal of winning the gold medal, he brought the first medal of this tournament to the Korean judo team.

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