It used to be that the -57kg division was the most exciting female category but at the Guadalajara Grand Prix it was clearly the -63kg division was the most thrilling to watch, with top athletes in every pool: Reigning World Champion Haruka Kaiju (JPN) in Pool A, Olympic and double World Champion Rafaela Silva (BRA) in Pool B, rising star Nauana Silva (BRA) in Pool C and former World Champion Jessica Klimkait (CAN) in Pool D.
As to be expected, all of them made their way to the semifinal where Kaju faced Rafaela Silva and Klimkait faced Nauana Silva. Kaju and Klimkait were the ones who prevailed and in the final, Kaju defeated Klimkait the same way she defeated all her earlier opponents, with a very simple turnover into a hold-down.
Kaju is quite a phenomenon. She is not a newbie (she is 25 years old) but she is relatively new to the international scene, with her first IJF event being the 2024 Tokyo Grand Slam. She unexpectedly won that one. Next, it was the 2025 Paris Grand Slam, a very difficult competition. She won that one too. Moving on, she won the 2025 Asian Championships. After which, she won the World Championships. In Guadalajara, she continued her winning streak. She has not been beaten international yet. What an impressive run she's had in the past year.
