What a sensational performance on day two of the European Youth Olympic Festival it was for Monica MARTINEZ DE RITUERTO MORILLAS of Spain, who looked unstoppable as she stepped closer and closer to the gold medal. On day one, Team Spain came so close to a gold medal from Alejandro CHIARRONI CUTILLAS, who instead settled for a well-earned silver, but with a win from Martinez de Rituerto, their team are second in the medal table.
Already smiling with medal in hand, we asked the Spanish judoka how she was feeling, and it turns out, more motivated than ever!
It’s just amazing! In only a few words! I think it’s only once I will get to do this, but now when I grow up I want to be here but for the real Olympic Games. I like seeing the other sports and having fun with other people who know how it feels, to share it. I felt really confident and really strong, I said to myself that I wanted to take the gold medal, definitely not the silver, not today.
In her semi final, she defeated her opponent with a dominant ko uchi gari with a grip down the back, which she repeated in the final to put her first score on the board, is ashi waza her ‘go to’?
It’s actually not one of my favourites, but I feel really confident there and I have good control over my opponent, so it’s easy for me like this, but I prefer to do sode, and now all of my opponents know what I do so I need to change my judo. I learned everything from my trainer, he is Portuguese, so he teaches me all the ne waza, so I really like to look for the juji, I think this is my favourite!
It wasn’t a straight forward day by any means with some tough opponents giving their all for the top place on the podium, but it was simply Martinez De Rituera’s day,
When I won the second fight against the girl from Moldova, Alexandra CHIRON, that was a time when I thought I was going to lose, but of course I won, but I felt that I could have lost against the French girl [Alice LOPEZ] but once I had that grip, I felt so good.
So what about the ultimate moment, the gold medal contest that brought the 2024 Cadet European silver medallist one step further?
I just felt stronger, I saw her face and I knew it was my fight. When you’re in the fight, I think your face is one of the most important things you have to care about. If you look like you’re going down, your opponent has won and I felt this.
Now it’s time to celebrate with the Spanish ‘house’ and this medal will rightfully draw some attention to judo from other sports.
It feels different because there are so many people, and maybe they don’t know anything about judo, but they have these feelings in sport, to train every day, to suffer and they understand what it takes to win.
Judoka
Author: Thea Cowen