Deguchi wins 2nd career gold at judo worlds, Canadian teammate Klimkait adds bronze

Christa Deguchi, who became the first Canadian to reach the medal podium at the world judo championships in 2018, is now a two-time champion.

She made a successful move for ippon in the women's under-57 kilogram final against Japan's Haruka Funakubo after getting a waza-ari on the board just over a minute into Tuesday's match in Doha, Qatar.

Deguchi, who was born in Japan but whose father is a Canadian citizen, previously won the world title in 2019, one year after earning bronze.

The world No. 2 defeated Enkhrillen Lkhagvatogoo of Mongolia in her semifinal after scoring two waza-ari.

Deguchi, who missed out on the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo after finishing behind teammate Jessica Klimkait at 2021 worlds, won gold last summer at the Commonwealth Games. She also won at the Croatia Grand Prix and Baku Grand Slam.

"Christa was nervous at the beginning of the day, but as the day progressed, she seemed more and more at ease, and she topped it all off in a spectacular final, where she dominated her opponent from start to finish," said Canada coach Antoine Valois-Fortier to The Canadian Press. "In that moment, she really showed us her best judo."

WATCH | Deguchi reaches top of medal podium in Doha:

On Tuesday, Klimkait picked up bronze in the same division at the 62nd edition of worlds.

The Whitby, Ont., native rolled Hasret Bozkurt of Turkey onto the tatami for the waza-ari and was awarded another after pinning her opponent to the mat, ending the contest in 49 seconds.

After losing to Lkhagvatogoo in the quarterfinals, Klimkait took the repechage route on the way to the podium.

WATCH | Klimkait grabs 3rd straight world championship medal:

"Although I came here wanting more, I'm glad to know that I'm consistent from year to