Mkheidze starts well in bid for first France gold

French judoka Luka Mkheidze qualified for the semifinals of the men's -60kg extra lightweight category on Saturday as he bids to win the host nation's first gold medal at the Paris Olympics.

Georgia-born Mkheidze, bronze medallist at the Tokyo Games, was cheered on by supporters waving the French flag and a large poster with his face on it. He beat Kim Won-jin from South Korea and will next face Turkey's Salih Yildiz.

Taiwan's Yang Yung-wei, silver medallist in Tokyo, lost to Kazakh Yeldos Smetov and failed to reach the quarterfinals.

Smetov will face Spaniard Francisco Garrigos in the other semifinal.

Garrigos beat Japanese Ryuju Nagayama who refused to shake hands with him at the end of the fight.

Nagayama, unhappy about the referee's decision to award victory by Ippon to the Spaniard, stayed on the mat for several minutes to boos from the crowd.

The atmosphere improved at the end of the morning when Shirine Boukli, in the women's -48kg extra lightweight category, and her compatriot Mkheidze secured victories at almost the same time.

The two French athletes had stepped on to the mat as the crowd sang the French national anthem.

Boukli lost to three-time world champion Natsumi Tsunoda of Japan who will face 18-year-old Swede Tara Babulfath. In the other semifinal, Mongolian Baasankhuu Bavuudorj from Mongolia will face Spain's Laura Martinez Abelenda.