The Coventry judoka was left speechless after exiting the Olympics early

Coventry’s Chelsie Giles was left stunned and speechless after the Olympics started and ended in just minutes.

Three years ago Giles flew under the radar and won Team GB’s first medal in Tokyo with bronze in the women’s judo in the 52kg category.

It provided the breakthrough the former swimmer, dancer and gymnast needed, becoming world number one the following year, while taking world silver and winning the European title.

There was no quiet entry into Paris and the hype was real and deserved after reaching the podium in seven of the top ten Grand Slam events he entered.

Some Olympic events last for hours, the sailing regatta, which started today in Marseille, comprises several races over several days and lasts for hours. Find something wrong, there is still a chance to correct it, you can even give up a bad performance, a nautical mulligan.

There is no Olympic replay in judo and Giles’ Games were over in an instant – or six minutes and six seconds, to be precise.

Brazilian Larissa Pimenta, a former world medallist, was always going to be a difficult opponent and she got her tactics right, Giles penalized twice for ‘shido’ – which translates to excessive passivity.

In fact, Pimenta just didn’t let it force her way into the contest and always seemed in control.

“It was just a very tactical game, I’ve fought her a few times before,” Giles said.

“I started a little slow, but I thought I was doing a lot better. Then I got unlucky and got caught on the wrong side.

“There’s not much I could have done, I just got caught.”

Team GB boasts a strong judo tradition at the Olympics with 20 medals, including eight silver and 12 bronze. They have reached the podium at the last three Games – Giles in Tokyo, Sally Conway in Rio and Karina Bryant and Gemma Howells in London 2012.

Giles, 27, was the main hope in the five-woman squad here, all funded by the National Lottery, which has supported the sport at elite and grassroots level for the past 30 years with funding of 42 million pounds.

It’s a tight-knit team and more opportunities lie ahead, including former world number one Lucy Renshall on Tuesday.

With over £30m a week raised for Good Causes, including vital funding for elite and grassroots sport, National Lottery players support our Olympic and Paralympic athletes to live their dreams and make the nation proud, providing more opportunities for people to take advantage of. part in sports. To learn more visit: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk