Shushila makes provisional Olympic cut

CHENNAI: Both Indian judokas — Jasleen Singh Saini and L Shushila Devi — lost their respective opening bouts at the World Judo Championships in Budapest (Hungary), but the latter is expected to grab the continental quota and make the Olympic cut based on superior ranking points. An official announcement in this regard will be made on June 28. 

“I can’t express how happy I am (for making the provisional Olympic cut). It was very difficult because of the Covid-19 pandemic. I always worked hard no matter which tournament I was competing in but, this time, I put in extra efforts to ensure I represent the country in the Olympics,” said Shushila (-48kg), who’s currently seventh in the Asian ranking. The top-10 are eligible for continental quota.

She lost to Vargas Ley Mary Dee of Chile in the opening round on Sunday. Jasleen (-66kg) had to win the first bout to edge past Shushila on Monday but he lost to Izvoreanu Radu of Maldova. Just participating in this marquee event helped these judokas earn 20 points each. A win in the first round guarantees a judoka 200 points. Shushila, with 989 points, was leading Jasleen by 69 points going into the event. The loss in the opening round for both the judokas meant Shushila still maintains the lead. 

France tour 
The three-member Indian team will now head to France for a month-long preparation camp. 

Full story: newindianexpress.com