Member News

September 14, 2007

Ronda Rousey, 70kg

Ronda Rousey to Fight in World Championship Medal Rounds  

( Rio de Janeiro , Brazil ) – Twenty-year-old Ronda Rousey (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE) has the chance to become only the fourth American in history to win a judo World title when she competes in the medal rounds tonight against 2005 World Champion Edith Bosch (NED) in the semifinals.  

After a first-round bye, Rousey defeated reigning Asian Champion Asuka Oka (JPN) in her first match of the 70kg division, throwing her for a yuko (quarter-point) score three minutes into the match and again for a waza-ari (half-point) in the last 50 seconds.  

In her next match, Rousey threw two-time World and Olympic medalist Ylenia Scapin (ITA) for a waza-ari just over a minute into the match and, though she received a penalty in the final minute for stalling, Scapin was still scoreless.   

In the quarter-finals, Rousey matched up against Mayra Aguiar (BRA), the teenager who she beat in the final minute of the Pan Am Games here in July.  This time Rousey used her much acclaimed groundwork skills to take her to the mat and pin Aguiar mid-way through the match.  

After moving up from 57kg, Marti Malloy ( San Jose , Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose State University ) won the first two matches in the 63kg division at her first World Championships.  

Malloy had an uneventful first two minutes with Ok Song Hong (PRK) until she threw Hong for a yuko to take a lead that she would hold on to for the remainder of the match.  Malloy threw Madeline Choconta (COL), who was down by a trio of penalties, with a taio toshi for waza-ari to advance to the third round.   

In the third round, Malloy was down by a fourth minute penalty when top-ranked Urska Zolnir (SLO) scored a yuko.  Zolnir was penalized as well, but won the match.   

Zolnir advanced to the semifinals, bringing Malloy into the loser’s pool where she threw four-time World Cup medalist Paulina Rainczuk (POL) for ippon with a taio toshi, but lost her next match against Anna Von Harnier (GER), 2003 World medalist by ippon.  

Malloy placed ninth overall with a 3-2 record in her first Worlds.

Travis Stevens ( Glenville , N.Y. / USA Judo National Training Site at the Jason Morris Judo Center / 81kg) threw Eddie Cooper (SOL) 30 seconds into first match in the 81kg division.  

In his next round, Stevens lost by a yuko to Giuseppe Maddaloni (ITA), 2000 Olympic Champion at 73kg.  

Rick Hawn ( Wakefield , Mass. / USA Judo National Team FORCE / 90kg) was thrown for a waza-ari in the first 30 seconds of his match against Ramzido Saidov (UZB).  Saidov was given a penalty with 20 seconds left, but Hawn couldn’t produce a score big enough to overcome his early throw deficit.