Harrison Wins First Ever US Olympic Gold For Judo

Since the day last fall that Kayla Harrison first publicly told her story of being sexually abused as a young teenager, she has been focused on using the Olympic podium as her platform for helping other abuse victims.

On Thursday (Aug. 2), she climbed that podium. After methodically defeating four competi- tors, after closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she stepped to the top of the Olympic medal stand.

Then she sobbed and she laughed, and she tried to mouth the words to the national anthem through tears.

“This is exactly what I wanted,” she said later, cradling her Olympic gold medal, the first ever for the U.S. in judo. “I can’t wait to help grow the sport of judo, to help victims overcome things and hopefully change somebody’s life, make a difference.”

She first had to change her life.

Harrison, now 22, wrote suicidal notes in her journal during the years the abuse was happen- ing. As the case was being investigated, the Middletown, Ohio, native moved to

Wakefield, Mass., to train with renowned judo coaches Jimmy Pedro, a 1999 world champion, and Pedro’s father, Jim Pedro Sr.

Harrison questioned for more than a year whether she wanted to continue in the sport.

“I hated judo,” she said. “I hated the Pedros. I didn’t want to be the strong girl. I didn’t want to be the golden girl. I didn’t want to be the girl who overcame everything.”

Her training partners pulled her out of bed in the morning to lift weights. They picked her up off the mat when she was crying.

“That’s why I owe all of this to my Pedros, to my teammates,” she said.

Their support, their encouragement, their insistence, ultimately put her on a different path.

“I’ve never done anything harder than having to go through that,” she said. “The Olympics, it wasn’t a breeze, but it was something that I was focused and that I wanted. I used every- thing as my fuel, and I was able to push it towards something positive and have a goal and have a dream.”

In 2008, Harrison won the U.S. Open, a junior world title and the Olympic Team Trials. The U.S., though, had not qualified the 78 kg. (172 lb.) class for the 2008 Games. Harrison went to Beijing as the training partner for Ronda Rousey, who won the first Olympic medal in U.S. women’s judo history, a bronze.

Marti Malloy won the U.S. its second women’s bronze earlier this week.

“The USA is not known to be a powerhouse of judo, but we’ve shocked the world here at these Olympics,” Jimmy Pedro said.

In 2010, Harrison won a world title, the first for U.S. judo since Jimmy Pedro’s 21 years be- fore. Last year, she won bronze at the world championships, which Jimmy Pedro said helped prepare her for the Olympics Games.

Ranked No. 2 in the world, Harrison faced Hungarian Abigel Joo, against whom Harrison was 0-2 before Thursday, in the Olympic quarterfinals. She went against top-ranked Mayra Aguiar of Brazil in the semifinals. She was 5-4 lifetime against Aguiar.

“I knew that was going to be the moment, that was going to be the gold-medal match,” Harrison said of the semifinal.

The match went into the last minute scoreless, but Harrison ended it with an ippon (a match- ending throw) with 14 seconds remaining.

Afterward, Pedro declared: “Today is Kayla Harrison’s day. We’re going to make Olympic history today.”

Awaiting in the final was British competitor Gemma Gibbons, ranked 42nd in the world. Gib- bons had been the upset artist of the day, beating third-ranked Audrey Tcheumeo of France in the semifinals.

Harrison had the upper hand in skill, but Gibbons had the crowd. British Prime Minister David Cameron was in the house and a deafening roar surged from the stands, as fans chanted Gibbons’ first name.

Harrison scored her first point, on a partial takedown, just one minute into the five-minute bout. It would be all she would need, although she scored another point before it was over.

At the end, she walked to the center of the mat and raised Gibbons’ hand.

“I wanted the crowd to give her her due,” Harrison said.

Then she ran and jumped into Jimmy Pedro’s arms. She found her fiancé, Aaron Handy, in the stands, and he handed her an American flag. She pointed and blew kisses to her family during the celebration.

“Stepping on the Olympic mat is nothing compared to what she’s already beat,” Jimmy Pedro said. “That’s what gives her incredible resolve. That’s what makes her a true champion with character. And that’s what makes her story so amazing.”