Mixed judo team wins bronze, 2nd medal for Israel at Tokyo Olympics

Judokas win spot on podium after 4:1 victory over Russian team; decisive bout won by Nelson-Levy; Paltchik says they were ‘eulogized too soon’ after criticism earlier in week

Israel’s mixed team in judo won a bronze medal at the Olympics on Saturday, the nation’s second medal at the Tokyo games.

The team scored a victory over their Russian opponents in the consolation round of an event that is being held for the first time this year.

In the battle for bronze, Israeli judoka Gili Sharir lost to Madina Taimazova, giving a 1:0 lead to the Russians.

However Sagi Muki took his bout against Mikhail Igolnikov, bringing the Israelis level at 1:1.

Next up was Raz Hershko who beat Aleksandra Babintseva to take the Israelis ahead 2:1, before Peter Paltchik took the score to 3:1.

A final victory for Timna Nelson-Levy gave Israel a 4:1 win and a spot on the podium.

Timna Nelson-Levy of Israel reacts after defeating Daria Mezhetskaia of the Russian Olympic Committee in their bronze medal match in team judo competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, on July 31, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Muki said the whole team had given everything they had to win the medal.

“Everyone here gave their heart and soul, and together we did it,” he said.

After a week of losses for Israel’s judokas, Paltchik said that the team had finally come together on Saturday.

“Everyone had a week that was very disappointing on a personal level, but something about this special day led to everyone giving a little more for the team, and that’s what made the difference,” he said of the victory. “We were eulogized too soon.”

Israel’s Peter Paltchik celebrates his victory over Russia’s Tamerlan Bashaev in the judo mixed team’s bronze medal B bout during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, on July 31, 2021. (Jack Guez/ AFP)

Israel’s podium place and Paltchik’s comment came just days after unnamed officials in Israel’s delegation to the Tokyo Olympics voiced strong criticism of the country’s judo team.

“This is a huge failure. Conclusions must be drawn as to how this collapse happened at the Olympics,” an unnamed delegation official was quoted as saying by the Ynet news site on Thursday.

“There is something systematic here, it isn’t a one-time failure, and all the judokas lost to inferior rivals,” the official said.

Team Israel celebrates winning the judo mixed team’s bronze medal B bout against Russia during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, on July 31, 2021. (Franck Fife/AFP)

Earlier in the week, the Israeli Olympic Committee said in a statement that “summaries and conclusions will only be drawn at the end of the games when we return to Israel.”

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Israel won two bronzes in judo, bringing the country’s total of Olympic medals to nine (now eleven) — four in judo (now five), with the sport considered a source of national pride.

France’s Teddy Riner (white) and Israel’s Or Sasson compete in the judo mixed team’s quarterfinal bout during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, on July 31, 2021. (Jack Guez/AFP)

Eleven medals were awarded to the mixed team, including to judokas who did not compete but were registered as team members on Saturday morning.

Team member Gili Cohen who was not registered and also did not compete on Saturday did not get a medal despite appeals from Israeli officials.

On the path to the podium, the Israeli judo team scored a 4:2 victory over Brazil in the repechage earlier on Saturday.

Tohar Butbul won his first match in the round before Sharir lost to her opponent. A win for Li Kochman was shortly followed by a defeat for Hershko, leaving the score at 2:2.

Paltchik then took the score to 3:2 before Nelson-Levy won the deciding bout, with the final score at 4:2 in Israel’s favor.

Prior to that, Israel lost 4-3 to France in the quarter-finals after initially taking a strong lead 3-1. France fought back to level out the scores 3-3 before winning the final bout. The French team later beat Japan to take the gold.

Tohar Butbul of Israel, left, and Eduardo Barbosa of Brazil compete during their repechage round match in team judo competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, on July 31, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

In the previous elimination round of 16, Israel defeated Italy 4-3 — Sharir won two bouts, while Hershko and Paltchik also won. Sharir’s victory over individual bronze medalist Maria Centracchio was a tie-breaker in the competition.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Yoav Cohen finished in first place in the Men’s RS:X Windsurfing medal race on Saturday but it was not enough to put him on the podium, with the Israeli coming in fourth overall.

Israel’s Yoav Cohen competes during the rs:x men’s race at the Enoshima harbour during the 2020 Summer Olympics, on July 28, 2021, in Fujisawa, Japan. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Earlier Saturday, Israeli archer Itay Shanny’s surprise Olympic run ended when he lost in the last eight in the men’s individual competition after a dramatic shoot off was needed to separate him from eventual victor Tang Chih-chun.

Shanny, who is the Jewish state’s first-ever archer to reach the Olympics, surprised with his run, knocking out two higher-ranked archers. Shanny had placed 60th out of 64 competitors in the initial ranking round.