Another heartbreaker for Pinay Jin Kiyomi Watanabe as she lost to Tang Jing of China in the round of 32 of the women's 63 kg division, resulting in her early elimination from the Paris Olympics.
Over three years after she was also sent home in the first round of the Tokyo Olympics, Tang took just 51 seconds to submit Watanabe, putting the Filipino-Japanese judoka out of contention after just one round.
Of the 22 players on the Philippine team, Watanabe became the sixth to leave the Paris Games empty-handed.
Lopsided beating
Watanabe had to spend the remainder of the opening minute playing ground game defense after Tang took her down in only 10 seconds.
Tang was able to get a gap for the kuzure-kesa-gatame, and Watanabe failed to break free from the grappling hold in the 20-second ippon count.
An ippon in judo is earned by forcefully tossing an opponent onto their back, pinning them down on their back for 20 seconds, or applying a joint lock or choke to force them into submission.
Watanabe's quick loss, though, brought back memories of her miserable Tokyo Olympic campaign, in which she was eliminated in the round of 32 after falling to Cristina Cabana Perez of Spain by ippon in the first 38 seconds.
History, still
Watanabe, who won a silver medal in the 2018 Asian Games for the Philippines, still made an exceptional achievement despite her loss.
Watanabe made history by being the first judoka from the Philippines to compete in more than three decades and only the third overall in Olympic history.
