Incoming Iowa Hawkeye Kennedy Blades won three matches to reach the Olympic finals at 76kg. In the Round of 16 Blades hit a picture perfect 5-point throw on her way to an 11-0 tech fall over Catalina Axente of Romania.
In the quarterfinals Blades defeated #5 seed Milaimy Marin of Cuba, 4-3.
Blades defeated #1 seed Aiperi Medet of Kyrgyzstan in the semifinals 8-6. Medet won silver at the 2023 World Championships and bronze in 2021.
Blades will face #2 seed Yuka Kagami of Japan for the Olympic Gold. Kagami was the 76kg champion at the 2023 World Freestyle Championships and won bronze at the 2021 worlds.
Blades announced on July 23 that she signed a Letter of Intent to compete at Iowa.
Blades is a 2021 U20 world champion and 2023 U20 bronze medalist. She was also a 2023 U23 silver medalist.
Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Blades competed for Wyoming Seminary in Pennsylvania.
For the Olympic Gold at 76kg it will be Kennedy Blades vs. Yuka Kagami of Japan at 7:15 AM CST tomorrow, Sunday, August 11.
The medal matches will be streamed live on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, NBC app, NBC Olympics app, or watch on TV at USA Network.
2024 Olympics – 76kg
Round of 16: Kennedy Blades (USA) VSU Catalina Axente (Romania) 11-0
Quarterfinals: Kennedy Blades (USA) VPO1 Milaimy Marin (Cuba) 4-3
Semifinals: Kennedy Blades (USA) VPO1 Aiperi Medet (Kyrgyzstan) 8-6
Finals: Kennedy Blades (USA) vs. Yuka Kagami (Japan)
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Go Hawks!
