(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kyung-yoon Kim = Hyun-ji Lee (19, Yongin University), the next generation of Korean judo, washed away the pain of the 2026 Aichi and Nagoya Asian Games and rose to the top of the World Championships.
Hyunji Lee, ranked 4th in the world, won the 2026 International Judo Federation (IJF) World Championships held at the National Gymnastics Stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan on the 10th (local time) by defeating Roman Dico (France, 3rd place) in the final of the women's over 78kg class with a half leg slalom followed by a round of side presses.
As a result, Korean Judo produced the women's heavyweight gold medalist at the World Championships for two consecutive years.
At last year's World Championships, Kim Ha-yoon (Ansan City Hall, 14th place) won the weight class, and Lee Hyun-ji lost to Kim Ha-yoon in the quarterfinals and then won a bronze medal through a repechage match.
On this day, Lee Hyun-ji showed off her incredible skills.
In the first round, she defeated Moira Morillo (Dominican Republic, 36th place) with a left heel kick 5 seconds into the match.
In the second round, she defeated Karen Leon (Venezuela, 17th place) with a right hip twist in just 9 seconds.
Asia Tabano (Italy), ranked 6th in the world, whom she met in the quarterfinals, was no match for Hyunji Lee.
As soon as the match started, Hyunji Lee put pressure on Tabano with a right horizontal press and won the bout.
In the semifinals, Lee Hyun-ji defeated the current world number one, Raj Hershko (Israel), with a left heel strike 46 seconds after the match started to advance to the finals.
The final opponent, Dico, is a veteran strongman in this sport who won bronze medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
However, Lee Hyun-ji pushed Dicko with his spirit.
As soon as the game started, Hyunji Lee actively pushed her opponent by immediately attempting to walk with her right leg.
Afterwards, Lee Hyun-ji did not back down and pushed the opponent with force.
Lee Hyun-ji, who was engaged in a catch fight, received a map while blocking her opponent's hardening attack with about 2 minutes left in the game.
However, Lee Hyun-ji did not feel intimidated. Rather, they increased the level of attack and pushed the opponent.
Lee Hyun-ji, who was fighting a catch, knocked down her opponent with a right leg swing with 1 minute and 44 seconds left in the game.
Afterwards, Lee Hyun-ji climbed onto the opponent's body and began to solidify it, and a bout was declared with a side press.
When victory was confirmed, Lee Hyun-ji raised both hands like a girl and did not hide her joy.
Born in 2007, Hyun-ji Lee is the daughter of Chi-hoon Lee, executive director of the Jeju Ssireum Association, a former wrestling player. After being selected as the youngest member of the national team in her first year at Namnyeong High School, she has continued to play an active role as a leading figure for the next generation.
Lee Hyun-ji, who made her name known by winning the 2024 World Youth Judo Championships, won various competition titles last year, her senior debut season.
Recently, he defeated Kim Ha-yoon, a senior member of the national team who won the World Championships and the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, in the national team selection match and was selected as the individual representative for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
However, Hyunji Lee showed an overwhelming performance in the final against New Shinran (China, 9th place) in the women's over 78 kg judo class at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan on the 2nd, but was caught off guard by a field leg walk, resulting in a loss in one match and taking a silver medal.
Lee Hyun-ji, who was a strong candidate for the championship, shed tears immediately after the game and blamed herself.
Hyeonji Lee did not collapse. Without resting, he immediately went on to participate in the World Championships, where all of the world's top athletes participated, and won a gold medal.
Lee Hyun-ji's gold medal is the only medal won by Korean judo in the individual competition at this competition.
On the same day, Paris Olympics silver medalist Kim Min-jong (Yangpyeong-gun Office, 15th place), who competed in the men's 100kg and over category, lost to Japan's Ganta Nakano (10th place) in a round of ankle braces in the first round and failed to win a medal.
