"I'm not going to settle for bronze, I want more but I can't say I'm disappointed with this medal. I'm going to learn to savor it," she said after the official ceremony.

To get this podium, Buchard beat in the repechage final the Mongolian Khorloodoi Bishrelt on waza-ari.

Above all, she succeeded in remobilizing after her defeat in the half against the formidable Japanese Uta Abe, the one who had deprived her of Olympic gold in the final in Tokyo.

From this fight, she also collected a beautiful "war wound", a good coquard in her right eye.

"In addition to beating me, she beat me up," she smiled.

At 27, Amandine Buchard won her third world bronze medal after those won in 2014 (in -48 kg) and in 2018. This is the first podium for France in this edition of the Worlds.

"I hope that behind there will be plenty of others. We will do the accounts at the end," she said.

Automatically qualified for the second round, Buchard had started her day with a sluggish victory against the Swiss Binta Ndiaye, before gradually freeing herself, first against the Spanish Estrella Lopez then the Brazilian Larissa Pimenta.

And then Uta Abe stood in her way.

Spectators at the Huma Arena in Tashkent were treated to a tough fight, started with a bang by the Japanese, author of a waza-ari after 13 seconds.

The Frenchwoman was able to answer him in the last minute of regulation time, pushing Abe into extra time for the first time of the day.

But in the golden score, while Buchard had taken the upper hand in the penalty game, the Japanese triggered a fatal uchi-mata.

Abe now leads 7 wins to 1 against the Frenchwoman.

- "I'm going to wear it out" -

"The main objective was to be world champion. Now there have been very good things. I banged my fist on the table and told her that I was not going to let her go until the Games. (…) I'm going to wear it out", promised the French about the Japanese, who then won in the final.

French judoka Amandine Buchard (blue kimono), during Friday's small final for the bronze medal in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV AFP

For her France team coach Christophe Massina, "she has everything it takes to beat Abe".

"She must realize that these moments are made for her. She is built for that," he said.

But on the road to the 2024 Olympics, her ultimate goal, Buchard will also have to be wary of other competitors, in particular the Briton Chelsie Giles and the Kosovare Distria Krasniqi who complete the podium in her category.

"We're going to get away with it until the Games and we're going to be wary of all the opponents. It's going to be up to me to do the + taf +", she said.

The other Frenchman hired on Friday, Walide Khyar, was eliminated in the third round at -66 kg.

Khyar seemed to have the upper hand, leading to penalties, but it only took one overtime action from Israeli Baruch Shmailov for him to win.

Saturday, for the third day of competition, Benjamin Axus and Joan-Benjamin Gaba (-73 kg) as well as Sarah-Léonie Cysique, Olympic vice-champion in Tokyo in -57 kg, will try to continue the blue harvest.

© 2022 AFP