Immense Althéa Laurin! Already assured of doing better than bronze at the Tokyo 2021 Games, the French taekwondo player won her first Olympic champion title this Saturday evening in Paris, beating the reigning European champion in the women's final of the + 67 kg category against the Uzbek Svetlana Osipova.
Althéa Laurin perfectly mastered her subject by winning her four fights in two rounds this Saturday. She secured the first against the Tajik Munira Abdusalomova. After a cautious start in the first round (3-0), facing an opponent she did not know, the Habs settled the second round with five kicks to the head, their trademark (12-0).
Althéa Laurin remains impassive at the decibels which continue to rise in the stands. Third fight. The scenario has changed. The +67 kg world champion finds herself facing the +73 kg world champion, the Turkish Nafia Aydin. The duel is closer. Fortunately, Althéa Laurin took cover in the first round (2-0). The second round ends with a perfect tie and few points (2-2).
After dismissing the Turkish Nafia Kus Aydin, reigning world champion, in the semi-final, the Frenchwoman dominated her fight head and shoulders and brought France its 16th Olympic gold medal, allowing her to surpass the record in Atlanta in 1996. This is the second success for French taekwondo in these Games, after Cyriane Ravet's bronze medal.
