Brazil wins overall title at judo Grand Prix in Peru with 11 medals

Brazilian judo claimed the overall championship title at the 2026 Lima Grand Prix in Peru at the close of the competition on Sunday (Aug. 16), leading the medal count.

The country took the podium 11 times, with five golds, one silver, and five bronzes, marking its best performance of the year. Italy came in second (two golds, two silvers, and four bronzes), followed by Moldova (two golds, two silvers, and one bronze).

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Brazil’s last two gold medals came on Sunday (Aug. 16), the day the country claimed the most podium finishes – it also won three bronze medals.

Rafael Macedo claimed the title in the -90 kg category by defeating Moldova’s Mihail Latisev with two waza-aris. Also celebrating at the top of the podium was Olympic champion Beatriz Souza. The Brazilian defeated Italy’s Asya Tavano in the +78 kg final with an ippon.

“This is the result of what we’ve been building day by day. I have a team working with me – I’m not doing this alone. Asya is a great opponent. Our last match was at the Olympics. We’ve both improved a lot since then, so I had to change my strategy,” said Beatriz Souza in a statement to the Brazilian Judo Confederation (CBJ) website.

Brazil’s first gold medals came on Friday (Aug. 14), the opening day of the Lima Grand Prix. Michel Augusto won the -60 kg division, and Rafaela Rodrigues won the -52 kg division. The next day, it was David Lima’s turn to stand atop the podium in the -81 kg division. In the final, the Brazilian defeated Canada’s Françoise Drapeau – currently ranked second in the world – with a yuko.

Brazil’s only silver medal at the Grand Prix went to Nauana Silva in the -70 kg category. On Saturday (15), she lost the final to Germany’s Dena Pohl.

Bronze medals

Brazil also won five bronze medals – three of them on Sunday (16). Guilherme Schimidt defeated Canada’s Keagan Young in the -90 kg category. There was also an all-Brazilian matchup in the battle for third place in the -100 kg category, with Leonardo Gonçalves defeating Giovani Ferreira. The final bronze medal went to Thauana Silva in the +78 kg category. Nauana’s older sister, she prevailed over Venezuela’s Karen Leon in the third-place match.

The day before, in another all-Brazilian matchup, Guilherme de Oliveira won the bronze medal in the -73 kg division by defeating Olympic medalist Daniel Cargnin with an ippon.

On Friday (14), in the third-place match of the -57 kg division, Jéssica Lima defeated Britain’s Acelya Toprak and secured her spot on the podium.