Perth podium place gives Team Bath judoka Megan Fletcher more precious points in Tokyo 2020 qualification campaign
Team Bath judoka Megan Fletcher gained more valuable points towards her goal of Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games qualification by winning silver at the Perth Oceania Open in Australia.
The 2019 edition of the World Cup event, for one year only, saw Grand Slam points awarded and attracted a world-class entry list.
Fletcher, coached by Juergen Klinger at the University of Bath Sports Training Village, fought well throughout the women’s -70kg competition and recorded her first victory over Croatia’s Barbara Matic en route to the final.
Germany’s Miriam Butkereit had the edge in the final but a fourth Grand Prix medal of 2019 was enough to lift Fletcher – pictured above inspiring the next generation of judoka through the Team Bath Futures Athlete Development Programme – up to 23rd in the world rankings.
Klinger said: “It was a good performance from Megan overall and gives her a good platform for the month ahead.”
Next up for Fletcher, who represents Ireland, is December’s Qingdao Masters in China where she will be joined by brother Ben, who is also targeting Tokyo 2020 qualification in the men’s -100kg category.
Find out more about the judo programme at the University of Bath by clicking here.
