Koga breaks through for -48 kg world crown

Wakana Koga claimed the -48 kg title at the 2026 World Championships in Baku, defeating Italy’s Assunta Scutto in a final packed with significance for both judoka. It was Koga’s fourth world championship medal, but the first gold of her career.

Koga arrived having reached three previous world championship final blocks without taking the title. Her determination to change that story was clear from the opening exchanges against Scutto, the 2025 world champion.

The Japanese judoka struck in less than a minute, scoring Yuko with a left-sided O-uchi-gari. Scutto showed her resilience by avoiding a fall for Ippon, but Koga quickly took control on the ground.

In ne-waza, Koga secured a hold that Scutto could not escape. The contest lasted one minute and 15 seconds, sealing a breakthrough world title for Koga and a fifth world championship medal, silver, for Scutto.

Koga turned three previous final-block appearances into her first world title.

Scutto’s route to the final also carried real weight. Since becoming world champion in 2025, she had faced injury, surgery and several defeats, before returning to the World Judo Tour podium in Lima. In Baku, she again showed the level that has made her one of the division’s leading athletes.

For Koga, the win also answered a personal challenge. She had previously lost to Scutto and had focused on improving the smaller details that had made the difference in earlier competitions. Her performance in the final reflected that intent, combining an early attacking score with decisive ne-waza.

European athletes also featured strongly in the medal contests. France’s Shirine Boukli earned bronze against Baasankhuu Bavuudorj of Mongolia after an intense contest shaped by penalties. The final Shido went to Bavuudorj for a false attack, giving Boukli her second world championship medal after her 2023 silver in Doha.

The other bronze went to Sabina Giliazova, who defeated Marina Vorobeva in an all-Russian contest. After extra time and a closely balanced contest, Vorobeva received a third Shido as Giliazova’s pace and intensity took over. It was Giliazova’s first world championship medal.

Koga left Baku as world champion, while Scutto, Boukli and Giliazova completed a -48 kg podium that showed just how deep the category remains.

Source: IJF.org

Image source: IJF / International Judo Federation