Japanese heavyweight judoka Kosei Inoue put the disappointment of his shock Olympic defeat behind him Sunday as he won the Kano Cup international tournament in his comeback to competitive judo.
Inoue ousted top collegiate judoka Yohei Takai in the semifinals and then toppled Yury Rybak of Belarus with a powerful uchimata leg trip 2 minutes, 22 seconds into the final for a clear "ippon" win at Nippon Budokan to claim his first Kano Cup.
"I love judo and it remains the biggest part of my life," Inoue, the 100-kg gold medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, said after his victory in his first tournament appearance since finishing out of the medals in Athens last summer.