BY AUDREY SNYDER
Marti Malloy had 90 minutes to regroup, both physically and emotionally, to maintain her
Olympic dream of reaching the podium. The Oak Harbor, Wash., native had lost in the semifinals
on an ippon by Romania’s Corina Caprioriu with seven seconds left in the bout. She had
one more chance to fight her way to the bronze medal.
The first-time Olympian came back with a powerful throw to down Italy’s Giulia Quintavalle
and capture the bronze in the women’s judo 57 kg. class. Her medal is the second for an
American female and the 11th overall in U.S. Olympic judo history.
“After losing the semifinal, it’s the hardest thing in the world to come back,” Malloy said.
“You want to be mad and angry and upset, but my coach pulled me aside and said, ‘You
came here to win. You lost a close match and if you really want to win you’re going to totally
change your mindset and come back and focus on the bronze.’”
Malloy’s path to the podium was one of the toughest of the day as she opened with a match
against the No. 2 female in the world – Portugal’s flag bearer, Telma Monteiro.
“We were 0-3 against that girl but the matches have gotten closer and closer every time,”
U.S. Coach Jimmy Pedro said. “She was poised to beat her and getting into her head a little.
I let her know that Monteiro was going to feel a ton of pressure if we keep this match close.”
The first match went to overtime in eight minutes and took a lot of energy out of Malloy. However,
she rebounded with a quick second match and was able to stay composed as Pedro
stayed in her ear. A two-time Olympic bronze medalist, Pedro reminded Malloy about the
matches he lost in Atlanta and Athens and how the time spent between a loss and the next
bout makes a difference.
Malloy took a 20-minute rest after leaving the mat and then began stretching for her fifth
and final match of the day. The 26-year-old said her fitness level allowed her to feel prepared
throughout the grueling turnaround. When she felt Quintavalle beginning to falter, Malloy
relied on her film study of the Italian to quickly make a move.
“I’ve only trained with the Italian before and never fought her in competition,’ Malloy said.
“I’ve been a huge fan of hers ever since she won the Olympics in 2008. I study her judo and
really look up to her. Knowing that was an advantage for me because I know what she does.”
Malloy is unsure whether she will compete at the 2016 Games in Rio. She said she’s satisfied
with her bronze from this competition and wants to shift her focus to becoming a world
champion.
“The shock of it still gives me goosebumps,” Malloy said. She quickly added that she may
leave her job as a receptionist and enter another field of work. The thought of answering the
phone and saying, “Bronze medalist speaking,” left Malloy in stitches.
As for falling short of a chance at the gold medal, Malloy says she will not look back and
wonder what could have been had she held on for seven more seconds in the semifinals.
“I feel like I fought my behind off in that match and I think I fought well and did everything
right,” Malloy said. “What’s done is done.”
In between Malloy’s bouts, Nick Delpopolo (Westfield, N.J.) came up one win short of the
semifinals in the men’s 73 kg. class in the men’s competition. His bout with Wang Ki-Chum
was scoreless, but the judges awarded the victory to Ki.
“I didn’t do enough offense,” said Delpopolo, who finished seventh. “I had favorable grips
and I just didn’t use it enough. You wish you could get it back but it’s a good lesson learned.”
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