The U18 world champion competed in a judogi she was not used to wearing.
Judoka Jolina Reinhold (17) has secured the German team’s first gold medal at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal. The U18 world champion won the final in the under-63-kilogramme category on Monday evening against Khushbu Rajakbhai Darjada from India with an ippon after 48 seconds.
On her way to the title, Reinhold – who had carried the German flag at the opening ceremony on Saturday – was not even deterred by an incident: Her own judo gi had not been measured before the competition, as was actually required. She therefore wore a gi provided by the organisers. In addition, her coach, Claudia Straub, had to watch from the stands during the quarter-final against Teressa Chayeb of Lebanon and the semi-final against Aaischa Kyialbekowa of Kyrgyzstan.
The Youth Olympic Games serve as a testing ground for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for sports on the Olympic programme. Rugby sevens, karate and sport climbing made their debut there before being included in the programme two years later. In Dakar, 151 events across 25 sports will be contested. Baseball5, beach wrestling, coastal rowing and the Chinese martial art wushu are part of the programme for the first time.