Yang Yung-wei made history on Sunday by achieving the best performance ever by a Taiwanese judoka at the World Judo Championships. He finished second in the men’s under-60-kilogram weight class. The previous best performance by Taiwan was a bronze medal won by Chou Yu-ping in 1987 and matched by Yang in 2022.
Yang’s recent performance in Abu Dhabi helped him secure the top ranking in his weight class, giving him the top seed for the upcoming World Judo Championships in Paris. Despite these achievements, Yang feels that there is still more work to be done. He remains focused on improving and not becoming complacent with his current success.
After finishing second in the Qazaqstan Barysy Grand Slam, Yang faced off against world No. 8 Giorgi Sardalashvili in the final in Abu Dhabi. The competition was intense, with the two judokas neck and neck throughout the regulation round. In the end, the young Georgian phenom emerged victorious in sudden-death, defeating Yang with a waza-ari.
Looking ahead, Yang will travel to Japan for the final stage of his overseas training before returning to Taiwan to prepare for the Paris Olympics. His goal is to continue improving and hopefully achieve even greater success in future competitions.
