Rael Kuloba exits Dakar judo competition after two defeats

Kenya’s Rael Kuloba Imase has been eliminated from the women’s 52-kilogram judo competition after losing two matches on day one of the competition in Dakar. Rael started her campaign in the round of 16, but the results did not go her way. In her first bout, Rael was no match for Victoria Grigorian, losing 100-0, with the Belgian scoring an ippon, the highest score in the match, to end the contest. Victoria advanced to the quarterfinals, while Kuloba dropped to the repechage competition. Her next opponent was Ousmane Boubakar from Ivory Coast, who also defeated her by ippon, ending her campaign. Rael was one of Kenya’s medal prospects, especially after performing well in previous junior Africa judo competitions. She has moved up to the 52-kilogram category from the 48-kilogram division, where she had dominated in African competitions.