Mayra Aguiar is now top favourite for Paris 2024

At the age of 31, Brazil’s Mayra Aguiar is now a triple World Champion. Aguiar stood up again after winning her first world championships medal in 2010, she continued each year with new big ones. Her first of three consecutive Olympic medals in 2012 and the first world title in 2014 followed by a new one in 2017 and now this one at the age of 30 in 2022 after a serious injury period, who would have thought she’d do it again?

She won her first match, against Petrunjela Pavic (CRO) through penalties. It wasn’t the most exciting way to start a World Championship campaign but she made up for it in her next match, throwing Aruna Jangeldina (KAZ) with tani-otoshi for ippon in 35 seconds.

Next up was perhaps her toughest opponent, the reigning Olympic Champion Shori Hamada (JPN). Aguiar dispatched her in less than two minutes with kosoto-gari for ippon.

She won her semifinal match against Alina Boehm (GER) with her favorite drop tai-otoshi for waza-ari. Her final was against little known Ma Zhenzhao (CHN). Aguiar scored waza-ari with kosoto-gari in 17 seconds and kept her lead all the way to the end of the match. 

The Brazilian women rely on an old generation that started in 2008 and this generation was supported by new young athletes that continued to win medals at Junior World Championships and integrated into the senior team like Silva and Aguiar both Junior World Champion. The women have always been strong and the success doesn’t seem to stop.

Experience seemed to have won this year. The average age of over 26 years was never so high this century among all world champions per edition. Eight world champions are 26 six years or older.

Her gold medal in Tashkent shows that Aguiar, despite being older than most of her opponents, is still a force to contend with in the U78kg category and will be a top contender for Olympic gold in 2024. That would also make her the oldest ever female Olympic champion. That record in held by Dongmei Xian (Beijing 2008).