Filipino-Japanese Kiyomi Watanabe wound up seventh overall in the prestigious 2017 World Judo Tour – Abu Dhabi Grand Slam held at the IPIC Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Nonetheless, Watanabe earned points to strengthen her bid to qualify to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. She really wanted to make it to the podium to give honors to our country following her bronze medal in the 2017 World Judo Tour – Paris Grand Slam in France. Watanabe hopes to bounce back in the 2017 World Judo Tour – Tokyo Grand Slam in Japan scheduled on December 2 and the 2017 Asian Open Judo Championship in Hong Kong on December 9. Watanabe was the highest placer in the six-man national judo team sent by the Philippine Judo Federation and Philippine Sports Commission in the world tour.

Source: Manila Times October 29, 2017 09:45 UTC