Preview women U48kg World Championships Budapest

In the category for women U48kg Distria Krasniqi (KOS) will be the favourite for the World Championships in Budapest on the first day. Without double World Champion Daria Bilodid and top Japanese Funa Tonaki in Budapest. Two French battle for the honour. Shirine Boukli (FRA) will go to Tokyo and would eventually skip Budapest due to her exams, but will in the end come to the Hungarian capital to see if she make her top form. Melanie Clement (FRA) will definitely fight for the honour as she won’t go to Tokyo.

In Spain there’s a huge battle going on between Julia Figueroa (ESP) and Laura Martinez Abelenda (ESP) but we give Figueroa our preference to go to Tokyo, just that bit more mature. In Serbia the battle for Tokyo U48kg is exciting. Milica Nikolic (SRB) will be the one fighting in Budapest we estimate Stojadinov to be present in Tokyo.

Let’s not wipe out Japanese youngster Wakana Koga (JPN) for the top 8 and Natsumi Tsunoda (JPN) is expected to make the top 8 as well, so it could well be very Asian once Otgontsetseg Galbadrakh (KAZ) can refind her form and her former compatriot Urantsetseg Munkhbat (MGL) is for sure expected to show her fabulous groundwork. Her young country woman Narantsetseg Ganbaatar (MGL) may stunt to reach the top 8. Two other Asians from Korea will battle for a medal but most is expected from Yu Jeong Kang (KOR). Munkhbat might face Marusa Stangar (SLO) in the quarter final. Both Spaniards have difficult opponents once reaching the quarter finals in Krasniqi and Boukli if the tournament unfolds the way we expect on paperwork. Luckily in judo paperwork doesn’t count.

What about the Russians? Dolgova will go to Tokyo. Sabina Giliazova (RUS) and Irena Khubulova (RUS) would want to reach a crowded top 8. Shira Rishony (ISR) has the reputation to survive the prelims. Same for Éva Csernoviczki (HUN) but we haven’t seen her for a long while, but given her farewell at this level, even at home in Budapest, we just keep an eye on her without expectations. Paula Pareto won’t be attending in Budapest but Keisy Perafan (ARG) will take her place. Two Azeri women are interesting to watch in what way they can resists one of the mentioned top athletes, Aisha Gurbanli (AZE) and Leyla Aliyeva (AZE). They all belong to the army of dark horses, but what’s a dark horse if we know all of them.