18-year-old Tara Babulfath could finally celebrate on Saturday night after securing an Olympic bronze in the 48-kilogram class in judo.
When she visited the Swedish Max studio the next day, the tone was quite different.
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After Saturday’s semifinal, the Swede expressed her frustration with the referee’s decision, which led to her loss. In the studio, she explains why the decision sparked such strong reactions.
– I disagreed with the referee’s decision and protested. I didn’t want to leave the mat without having done everything I could. I gave it all I had. It was incredibly frustrating that a referee had to decide the semifinal, Babulfath tells Max, as quoted by Aftonbladet.
– They took a gold from me
Babulfath lost the semifinal in
The Swede strongly disagreed with the referee’s decision.
– Of course, I’m disappointed. It makes me sad because they took a gold from me, Babulfath explains.
She also made her feelings known to the referee right after the decision was made, which led to discussions about whether she would be allowed to participate in the bronze final or not.
Now she explains how those minutes felt.
– There was a discussion about whether I would be allowed to participate or not. When I finally got the message that I was allowed, I felt so relieved. At that moment, I felt I had everything to win, Babulfath recounts.
Could have consequences
Even though the Swede was allowed to participate in the bronze final, it doesn’t mean she automatically escapes all penalties.
– There will be consequences, but at least she got the opportunity to fight for the bronze medal, says the 18-year-old’s coach Jane Bridge.
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There should be no risk of the bronze medal being taken from her afterward, Aftonbladet reports.
Japanese Natsumi Tsunoda, who won the semifinal against Babulfath, was able to take home the gold medal.