Canadian judokas were dominant at the Commonwealth judo championships in Cardiff, Wales capturing a total of 19 medals in senior and junior competition – even fighting each other to stand on the top platform. Five Canadians took gold medals while two – Nedjo Sarenac and Monika Burgess – were double medalists taking hardware in both senior and junior categaries.
In the under-63 kg category, Stéfanie Tremblay won a short final match against a fellow Canadian, Ontario's Monika Burgess, who had won a bronze on Tuesday in junior matches.
"After a minute and a half of combat when the score was still 0-0, but Monika fractured her collarbone and as a result was unable to continue the bout," said Canadian coach Sergio Pessoa.
"Despite her pain, she wanted to pick up her medal before going to hospital."
Quebec fighter Elodie Lavoie also earned a bronze medal in the under-63 kg category on in junior competitions.
Earning a gold medal was Audrey Francis Méthot (under-52 kg), who bested England's Amelia Cook in an exciting final round. "It was a great result for Audrey, she recently changed weight category and this is her first match in her new 52 kg class, it's a great start for her," said Pessoa.
In the 57-kg weight class, Ontario's Nicole Jenicke and Quebec's Ecaterina Guica won silver and bronze medals, respectively, with Guica also winning a Junior title in her class. In junior matches, Ontario's Kaitlyn Dennis (57 kg) also fought to a bronze medal.
In the under-70 kg category, Alix Renaud-Roy won silver, defeating New Zealand's Moira DeVillers in the final. In women's junior bouts, Renaud-Roy also brought home some hardware, winning silver in her weight category. Senior competitor Sarah-Myriam Mazouz (70 kg) joined her with a bronze against Wales' Kate Rennie.
Nova Scotia native Whitney Lohnes battled to a silver medal in the under-48 kg category. The Canadian lost out in the final to England's Charlotte Farbon. In junior competition Lohnes earned top honours in the grand finale.
In men's judo action, Guillaume Perrault (90 kg) fought his way to a silver medal against England's Jon Purssey, who took the gold. Ontario native Nedjo Sarenac also won a silver medal in the Open category, and a bronze medal in the under-100 kg class.
In under-73 kg judo action Derek Langlois (Ontario) grabbed the second step of the podium with a silver medal; in the final, the Canadian was bested by Wales' Curtis Dodge. In the same category, Quebec's Justin Imagawa finished fifth.
Quebec's Patrick Gagné at 66 kg and Ignatio Rodriguez (Over 100 kg) both finished fifth; Diego Sanchez (60 kg) finished seventh in his category.