Xian reclaims judo crown

Athens champion Xian Dongmei won China's first gold medal in judo at the Beijing games, defeating An Kum Ae of North Korea in the women's 52kg division.

Xian Dongmei of China celebrates after defeating An Kum Ae of North Korea during their women's 52kg final judo match.

BEIJING // Xian Dongmei, champion in 2004, won China's first gold medal in judo at the Beijing games, defeating An Kum Ae of North Korea in the women's 52kg division. Xian brought the sell-out crowd to its feet when she outscored An in an aggressive match that followed a series of winning throws which got her through to the final with little danger. The Algerian Soraya Haddad, who defeated Sholpan Kaliyeva of Kazakhstan on points in a lopsided match, and Misato Nakamura of Japan, who pinned South Korea's Kim Kyong-ok, took the bronzes.

In the men's 66kg category Masato Uchishiba successfully defended his Olympic crown, pinning Benjamin Darbelet of France just seconds into their final match to give Japan their first victory in the judo discipline of these games. Uchishiba exploded into Darbelet and threw him to the ground shortly after the bout began. Darbelet managed to twist enough to keep the fall from ending the match, but Uchishiba then grabbed an armlock and Darbelet had to concede. Darbelet was still grimacing in pain as Uchishiba bowed in victory. Taking the bronze medals were Yordanis Arencibia of Cuba, who defeated Alim Gadanov of Russia on points, and Pak Chol Min of North Korea, who outscored Mirali Sharipov of Uzbekistan.