RIO DE JANEIRO — Beslan Mudranov won scandal-depleted Russia's first gold medal of the Rio Olympics in the judo Saturday after their team was slashed over a massive doping conspiracy.
Mudranov won the men's 60kg final with a golden score victory over Kazakhstan's Yeldos Smetov, putting Russia's reduced team on the medals table on day one.
Mudranov, ranked 16 in the world, won by waza-ari 44 seconds into the golden score period after neither man was able to score any points in the regular period.
Japan's Naohisa Takato and Diyorbek Urozboev of Uzbekistan claimed bronze.
"Our country has been subject to a lot of psychological pressure, so to win a gold medal on the very first day means a lot for my country," said Mudranov.
The IOC cut the Russian delegation by more than 100 athletes after an anti-doping investigation uncovered widespread state-sponsored doping. But it resisted ordered an all-out Russian ban over the investigation.
[caption id="attachment_74882" align="alignright" width="300"]
Paula Pareto of Argentina poses with her gold medal. — Reuters[/caption]Russia has its smallest team in more than a century at the Olympics over the chaos which has thrown many Russian athletes preparations into chaos.
But Mudranov insisted he was always confident of being allowed to compete despite just landing in Brazil three days before competing.
"Before the Games we were training in Portugal for 10 days and we arrived here on August 3.
"We were confident, we were sure it can't be that the whole country won't be allowed to compete in the Olympic games.
"The president of the IOC realized it would be unjust for the athletes who have spent their entire life preparing for the Games, and for some it will be their only Games."
Paula Pareto became Argentina's first woman Olympic gold medal winner in the judo as Brazilian Sarah Menezes' dream of delivering the host first medal was ended by injury.
Pareto saw off South Korea's Jeong Bo-kyeong in the 48kg final to add to the bronze medal she won in Beijing eight years ago. Defending champion Menezes ended in the Olympic hospital with a dislocated shoulder.
"It is great for women's sport (in Argentina)," said Pareto after her win.
For 2012 champion Menezes, the dream of retaining her title on home soil was dashed when she was beaten by Cuban Dayaris Mestre Alvarez in the quarterfinals. Menezes still had a shot at the podium through the repechage, but suffered a dislocated elbow in her clash with Urantsegtseg Munkhbat of Mongolia.
Japan's Ami Kondo and Otgontsetseg Galbadrakh of Kazakhstan took the two bronze medals.
Pareto struggled early in the final and the contest even had to be briefly halted as she received treatment when she took an unintentional blow to the face from Jeong.
However, the 30-year-old battled back to land a waza-ari and defended her advantage to add Olympic gold to the world championship she won last year.
