National team coach Pedro Soares didn’t mince words after Jorge Fonseca’s recent match. Fonseca made a rookie mistake, and Soares called it “unacceptable.” This error happened in a crucial competition, and Soares thinks it’s not the kind of mistake a top athlete should make. He blamed exhaustion, but still considers it inexcusable.
Fonseca lost by ippon with just 13 seconds left, and Soares was clearly disappointed. He thought Fonseca could have won against Dzhafar Kostoev, but the mistake was too big. Soares said, “You can accept it due to tiredness, but it’s an inexcusable error for an athlete of his level.”
Soares thinks the team’s performance was weak. Out of four athletes, they only managed a seventh place. He’s waiting for the younger athletes to improve and for Fonseca to stop making mistakes. Soares spared two athletes from harsh criticism – Oto Kvantidze and João Fernando. Kvantidze, the youngest, had a great win against a top opponent, Heydarov. Fernando had a tough start but still managed to beat a seeded athlete and only lost to a very strong opponent. Soares remembers that Fernando didn’t attend any international training camps because he was torn between judo and his professional life.
Soares wants to see growth from his team, especially from the younger athletes. He knows they have potential, but they need to work on their mistakes and get better. For now, the team’s performance is just not good enough.