Paris 2024 Olympics: Defending champion Abe Uta gets loudest cheers despite shocking loss
Abe Uta may not have a chance to defend her Olympic judo title in the women’s -52kg at the Paris 2024 Olympics but bowed out winning the hearts and minds of the fans at the packed Champ-de-Mars Arena.
On Sunday (28 July), Uta was eliminated in her second fight at the Paris Olympics with a defeat to world number one Diyora Keldiyorova of Uzbekistan. The Uzbek delivered a throw with 56 seconds to go to win the contest by ippon, a crushing defeat for the Japanese star.
After the final buzzer, Uta remained squatted in tears on the tatami for several minutes. She was inconsolable.
The crowd showed their support for the Japanese hero as the claps and chants of “Uta! Uta! Uta!" reverberated through the arena.
With the help of one of the Japanese coaches, the four-time world champion got off the tatami as she came to grips with the fact that she would not get to defend her title.
A dejected Uta left the arena with her coach and did not stop to speak to the media. Japan’s head coach Masuchi Katsuyuki spoke afterwards voicing the athlete's disappointment.
"She was sobbing uncontrollably after stepping off the tatami, and she cried a lot in the athletes' room. She was very down, so I couldn't say anything to her. All I could do was gently pat her back to console her. It's something that will take time," Masuchi explained.
"The Olympic Games was something Uta herself had been intensely focused on since last year. This match made me feel the 'fear of competition' once again. Everyone was expecting Uta to win, but this match taught us how difficult it is to defend a title and achieve back-to-back victories."
It was a heartbreaking loss for Uta, her first since the Osaka Grand Slam in November 2019. She had hoped to celebrate another Olympic double here with her brother in Paris.
"She has been a consistent winner, making her a target of intense analysis by her opponents. It's tough to maintain that winning streak under such observation."
The 24-year-old had begun the day with a win over Canada’s Kelly Deguchi before her defeat.