Rio Olympics 2016: Rafaela Silva wins judo gold for Brazil
- Published
Olympic Games on the BBC |
---|
Hosts: Rio de Janeiro Dates: 5-21 August Rio time: BST -4 |
Coverage: Watch on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four, Red Button and up to 24 HD video streams on mobile, desktop, connected TVs and app, plus follow on Radio 5 live and via live text commentary. |
Brazil won their first gold medal of the Rio Olympics as Rafaela Silva triumphed in the women's -57kg judo.
Silva defeated world number one Sumiya Dorjsuren of Mongolia by Waza-ari to delight a partisan crowd at Carioca 2.
The gold medal marks a fairytale rise to Olympic triumph from a childhood in Rio's notorious 'City of God' favela for Silva.
"Judo is my life," said Silva. "I love competing at home, because of the fans. Their cheering helps a lot."
And she added: "I hope that this medal opened doors for more medals this week."
Silva qualified for the London 2012 Games but was disqualified in the early rounds for a rule violation.
London champion Kaori Matsumoto of Japan took bronze alongside five-time European champion Telma Monteiro of Portugal.
Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter, external to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.
- Published9 August 2016
- Published18 August 2016
- Published3 August 2016
- Published19 July 2016
- Published3 August 2016