The 2016 Summer Olympics are the first Games ever to include Kosovo as an independent state. Kosovar athletes have played before, but under the flag of other countries or as independent participants.
Kosovo wins its first independent Olympic medal ever
Majlinda Kelmendi gave Kosovo its first Olympic medal as an independent nation, snaring the gold in the women’s judo 52kg division.
Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
That’s different this year, with the International Olympic Committee green-lighting Kosovo to participate in Rio as its own entity, a decision made in 2014. Serbia had sought to block Kosovo from inclusion after Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008.
Now Kosovo has the first Olympic medal of its own. Majlinda Kelmendi won the gold medal in the women’s judo 52k weight class on Sunday, putting Kosovo on the medal count board for the first time in its history. Kelmendi initially guaranteed a silver medal for Kosovo when she took down Misato Nakamura of Japan in the semifinals.
That put her into a finals match against the tough Odette Giuffrida of Italy. Kelmendi scored an early point in the match, but got a penalty for being too defensive. As the match neared its end, she skirted the line with delay tactics, but ultimately came out on top to earn the gold over Giuffrida, who took the silver.
Nakamura earned one of the bronze medals, while Natalia Kuziutina of Russia took the other bronze.
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