Marcus Nyman earned his second gold medal on the IJF circuit this season ©IJF

Sweden’s Marcus Nyman continued his impressive form in 2016 by earning men’s under 90 kilogram gold on the final day of the International Judo Federation (IJF) Baku Grand Slam at the Heydar Aliyev Sports and Exhibition Complex.

The 25-year-old has already earned Grand Prix gold and silver medals in Dusseldorf and Samsun this year to emerge as a contender for a podium finish at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Nyman reinforced those credentials by earning five straight wins in Azerbaijan’s capital city to claim the gold, with four coming through ippons.

The last came in the gold medal contest against Serbia’s Aleksandar Kukolj, as the Swedish star held down his rival for 20 seconds to seal the win.

France’s Axel Clerget scored two yukos to defeat the home judoka Mammadali Mehdiyev in the first bronze medal contest, while Russia’s Kirill Denisov triumphed with an ippon against Switzerland’s Ciril Grossklaus.

Having boosted his Olympic chances by winning gold at the Samsun Grand Prix, Georgia’s Beka Gviniashvili all but secured a Rio 2016 spot by returning to the top of the men’s under 100kg podium in Baku.

The under 90kg world junior champion, who stepped up a weight class in December, secured an ippon in the opening minute of the final against Hungary’s Miklos Cirjenics.

Beka Gviniashivili moved to the brink of earning a Rio 2016 spot after another fine series of performances
Beka Gviniashivili moved to the brink of earning a Rio 2016 spot after another fine series of performances ©IJF

Germany’s Dimitri Peters scored with a yuko to defeat Russia’s Adlan Bisultanov in the first bronze medal clash, but his team-mate Karl-Richard Frey was unable to replicate the feat as he lost via an ippon to Japan’s Aaron Wolf.

The final men’s competition of the weekend, the over 100kg event, saw Ukraine’s Iakiv Khammo emerge victorious as he sealed a golden score win over The Netherlands’ Roy Meyer, after their contest had ended level at the end of the regulation five minutes.

A yuko proved enough for Brazil’s David Moura to beat Mongolia’s Temuulen Battulga to win bronze, with the result seeing him join Barna Bor on the podium, after the Hungarian’s opponent Abdullo Tangriev of Uzbekistan withdrew through injury.

In the women’s under 78kg division, Dutch star Guusje Steenhuis triumphed for the second consecutive year in Baku after a series of impressive performances.

She had been due to face Marhinde Verkerk in the gold medal contest, but was instead awarded the victory with her compatriot having had to pull out due to a knee problem.

Japan’s Mami Umeki conquered Olympic silver medallist Gemma Gibbons in the first bronze medal bout, after triumphing with an ippon against her British opponent.

Both women's competitions ended with walkovers after two finalists were forced to withdraw due to injuries
Both women's competitions ended with walkovers after two finalists were forced to withdraw due to injuries ©IJF

The final podium spot was earned by Germany’s Luise Malzahn, following her yuko victory over Ukraine’s Victoriia Turks.

The over 78kg competition also saw gold awarded to the winner due to an opponent’s injury, with Chinese world champion Yu Song unable to compete in the final, leaving Japan’s Kanae Yamabe as the victor.

Tunisia’s Nihal Cheikh Rouhou scored with an ippon against Lithuania’s Santa Pakenyte to receive a bronze medal, with the second awarded to France’s Emilie Andeol after she beat Maryna Slutskaya of Belarus with a yuko.

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