Day 2 of the Tokyo Grand slam concludes the 2023 Judo Season on a high

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In the men's under 100kg class, the 22-year-old Matvey Kanikovskiy started the finals off in top form, surprising his 18-year-old Japanese opponent and current junior world champion, Dota Arai, with a hikikomi-gaeshi in just 40 seconds to score ippon. As he claimed his Tokyo gold, Kanikovskiy also claimed his third Grand Slam title of the year as well as his fifth title in as many attempts.

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Coming in third place were Azerbaijan's Zelym Kotsoiev and Michael Korrel from the Netherlands, each taking home the bronze.

Awarding the medals was IJF Head Referee Director, Florin Daniel Lascau.

In the women's under 52kg category,  four-time World Champion and current Olympic champion, Uta Abe ploughed through her opponents to reach the final. Facing France's Astride Gneto, she turned the match into a quick one and done, ending the final in the first minute with an ippon, delighting the local crowd!

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When addressing the press after her victory, the gold medallist detailed her motivation.

Standing on the third step of the podium were Israeli Gefen Primo and Mongolia's Sosorbaram Lkhgvasuren

IJF Ambassador Her Imperial Highness Princess Tomohito of Mikasa awarded the medals.

Uta wasn't the only Abe showcasing their skills today to collect some prized hardware.

Her older brother, Hifumi Abe, the current Olympic and world champion made his return to international competition in Tokyo following his 3rd world title defence in Doha earlier this year. Coming in with a 36-match winning streak stretching back to 2019,  all eyes were on him.

In the men's under 66kg c