Pool A: Yu (CHN)
Yu started off impressively, throwing Sonia Asselah (ALG) with a harai-goshi for ippon. She had a harder time against Kayra Sayit (TUR) though. Until the last 15 seconds of the match, both players were even with two shidos each when Yu struck with her trademark soto-makikomi for yuko. She then clamped on a pin that got her a waza-ari after which the Turkish player tapped out. So, within the last 15 seconds of the match, Yu scored yuko, waza-ari and ippon.
Pool B: Andeol (FRA)
Andeol had a really difficult time against Vanessa Zambotti (MEX) and only managed to win after the Mexican player flopped and dropped during Golden Score and got a shido for it. The clearly frustrated Andeol was seen crying as she got off the mat, even though she had won the match. It clearly wasn't tears of joy. Her second match of the day, against Nihel Cheikh Rahou (TUN), was hardly any better. It too went into Golden Score and as was the case with the first match, Andeol won it after her opponent flopped and dropped, earning herself a shido. It was not a good morning session for Andeol but she was through to the semi-finals.
Pool C: Ortiz (CUB)
Ortiz provided some excitement for the fans with a fantastic ura-nage throw for ippon against her Ksenia Chibisova (RUS). Her second match, against Kim Minjeong (KOR), was just as exciting. She threw her opponent with drop seoi-nage for yuko and then followed that up with a very gutsy yoko-guruma for waza-ari. Once Kim hit the mat, Ortiz immediately clamped on a pin for waz-ari-awasatte-ippon.
Pool D: Yamabe (JPN)
Yamabe had a difficult time against Santa Pakenyte (LTU) and was down by a shido when in the last minute she managed to strike with an osoto-gari that took her much larger opponent down for ippon. That brought her up against Tessie Savelkouls (NED) whom she threw, first with soto-makikomi for yuko, and then with harai-goshi for ippon.
Repecharge
Although Sayit was smaller than Cheikh Rahou, it was the Turkish player who scored. She came in with a forward attack which prompted the Tunisian to initiate an ura-nage. Sayit then countered that by taking Cheikh Rahou straight down for a waza-ari and then pinned her for an ippon. In the other repecharge match, Kim was down on penalties before she started attacking Savelkouls aggressively, throwing her twice, with drop sode-tsuri-komi-goshi for yuko each time. She then pinned the Dutch player with sankaku for ippon.
Semi-Finals
After a disappointing morning session, Andeol performed superbly in her semi-final, throwing Yu for ippon. She had initiated a forward movement causing Yu to pull backwards, with Andeol landing on top for an ippon. In the second semi-final match, Ortiz showed off her throwing skills by launching Yamabe with a big hip throw for yuko. A little bit more rotation could have easily given her the ippon. But this was enough to win her the match and a ticket to the final.
Bronze
Yamabe scored early with a very low osoto-gari for waza-ari and then held on until the end of the match. It's not typically the Japanese style to fight with tactics as they generally prefer to go for ippon. But with a bronze at stake, Yamabe didn't seem to mind and accrued three shidos by the end of the match. In the other bronze medal match, Yu used her favorite soto-makikomi to throw Kim for ippon. It's not the most elegant of throws but it works well, especially for female heavyweights.
Day 7: Women's +78kg
The heaviest women's category of +78kg also had the smallest number of participants at 17. The top gold medal prospects were Yu Song (CHN) and Idalys Ortiz (CUB) but Emilie Andeol (FRA) and Kanae Yamabe (JPN) were strong contenders too.