| Member News
August 11, 2008
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Travis Stevens |
Travis Stevens Makes Olympic Debut in the 81kg Division on Tuesday
(Beijing, China) – Travis Stevens (Glenville, N.Y. / Tacoma, Wash.) will make his Olympic debut in the 81kg division on Tuesday. The 22-year-old will begin his day with a first round bye and a second-round match against Franklin Cisneros (ESA).
A win against Cisneros would move Stevens into the third round against either Ole Bischof (GER) or 2004 Olympic fifth-place finisher Mekhman Azizov (AZE). With the reigning World Champion, Tiago Camilo, in his pool, Stevens has no room for error, but the 2007 Pan American Games Champion has upset top players before and will see to do so again in Beijing.
Camilo will not have any easy road to the finals, either, as his first-round match is against 2005 World medalist Takashi Ono (JPN).
Preliminary competition begins at noon at the Beijing University of Science and Technology Gymnasium. Preliminary rounds will run until completion and the evening finals (including semifinals, repechage finals and gold and bronze medal matches) will begin at 6 p.m.
Below are past 81kg results:
2007 World Championship Results
* Indicates Players Competing in Beijing
1. Tiago Camilo (BRA)*
2. Anthony Rodriguez (FRA)*
3. Guilaume Elmont (NED)*
3. Euan Burton (GBR)*
5. Robert Krawczyk (POL)*
5. Giuseppe Maddaloni (ITA)
7. Yong-Woo Kwon (KOR)
7. Tomislav Marijanovic (CRO)
2005 World Championship Results
1. Guillaume Elmont (NED)*
2. Abderahmane Benamadi (ALG)
3. Takashi Ono (JPN)*
3. Roman Gontyuk (UKR)*
5. Anthony Rodriguez (FRA)*
5. Min-Kyu Kim (KOR)
7. Alexei Budolin (EST)
7. Dmitri Nossov (RUS)
2004 Olympic Results
1. Ilias Iliadis (GRE)
2. Roman Gontyuk (UKR)*
3. Flavio Canto (BRA)
3. Dmitri Nossov (RUS)
5. Robert Krawczyk (POL)*
5. Mekhman Azizov (AZE)*
7. Florian Wanner (GER)
7. Yong-Woo Kwon (KOR)
Team USA did not qualify an athlete to compete in the other division being contested on Sunday – women’s 63kg.
The 63kg division has been a virtual revolving door for the past several years with five of the top seven players at the 2007 World Championships were athletes had placed in the top seven at the 2005 Worlds and a sixth (Austria’s Claudia Heill) was a 2004 Olympic medalist.
After a brief retirement following her 2005 World bronze medal, 34-year-old Driulis Gonzalez (CUB) was back last year to earn her third World title and is favored to return to the finals this year as well when she will aim for her fifth Olympic medal, having placed in the top three at every Olympic Games since women’s judo was introduced as a medal sport in 1992.
Gonzalez will start her day with a difficult first match against either former European Champion Sarah Clark (GBR) or Heill who Gonzalez defeated at the 2007 World Championships.
Also watch for a first-round match between 2005 World Champion Lucie Decosse (FRA), who lost to Gonzalez at the 2007 World finals, and two-time World medalist Urska Zolnir (SLO). While Decosse has beaten Zolnir at least nine times in a five-year span, upsets have abounded this week and this could be one of them.
Defending Olympic Champion Ayumi Tanimoto (JPN) is looking to add a fourth medal to her nation’s tally this week and is expected to advance to the medal rounds.
Below are past 63kg results:
2007 World Championships
1. Driulis Gonzalez (CUB)*
2. Lucie Decosse (FRA)*
3. Elisabeth Willeboordse (NED)*
3. Ayumi Tanimoto (JPN)*
5. Anna Von Harnier GER)*
5. Urska Zolnir (SLO)*
7. Claudia Heill (AUT)*
7. Ja-Young Kong (KOR)*
2005 World Championships
1. Lucie Decosse (FRA)*
2. Ayumi Tanimoto (JPN)*
3. Driulis Gonzalez (CUB)*
3. Urska Zolnir (SLO)*
5. Anna Von Harnier (GER)*
5. Marie-Helene Chisholm (CAN)
7. Elisabeth Willedboordse (NED)*
7. Bok-Hee Lee (KOR)
2004 Olympic Results
1. Ayumi Tanimoto (JPN)*
2. Claudia Heill (AUT)*
3. Driulis Gonzalez (CUB)*
3. Urska Zolnir (SLO)*
5. Daniela Krukower (ARG)*
5. Marie-Helene Chisholm (CAN)
7. Lucie Decosse (FRA)*
7. Ok-Song Hong (PRK) |
