Sarah-Léonie Cysique was just one victory away from reaching the World Championship final in Baku, Azerbaijan, and moving closer to the individual world title she had been chasing. She nearly made it in 2025 only to lose to Momo Tamaoki in the semi-final. A year later, and once again, the French judoka had reached the women’s 57 kg semifinal at the World Judo Championships. However, this time, her hopes of fighting for gold were suddenly cut short after a frightening fall against Japan’s Akari Omori.

The incident happened on October 6, during the semifinal at the World Championships in Baku. Just 14 seconds into the bout, Omori launched a legal harai-goshi, a hip-throwing technique that sent Cysique off balance and toward the tatami. The French judoka landed awkwardly, first on her upper body before her head struck the mat and bounced off it, causing her neck to compress.

Cysique remained on the mat and was unable to get back to her feet. Medical staff quickly came onto the tatami to attend to the two-time Olympic medalist. Her neck was stabilized with a cervical brace before she was placed on a stretcher and carried away from the competition area. She was then taken by ambulance to a hospital in Baku for further examinations.

The throw itself was ruled legal, and Omori was awarded an ippon, sending the Japanese judoka through to the World Championship final. Cysique, meanwhile, had technically qualified for the bronze-medal contest, but the injury meant she could not compete. She later underwent a CT scan and MRI at the Leyla Medical Center in Baku.

The results were described as reassuring, and Cysique was able to return to the French team’s hotel that evening. She remained under the supervision of the French team doctor and was due to be reassessed within 48 hours.

The injury nevertheless ended her individual campaign. Cysique withdrew from the bronze-medal bout, allowing Croatia’s Ana Viktorija Puljiz to claim the medal. The official IJF results list Cysique in fifth place in the women’s 57 kg division. For Cysique, the setback came while she was chasing her first individual world title.

She had already won Olympic silver in Tokyo in 2021 and bronze at Paris 2024, while also collecting mixed-team Olympic gold at both Games. She had also claimed her first individual World Championship medal with bronze in 2025. But the frightening scenes in Baku were not the first time Cysique had found herself in a dangerous situation on the judo mat.

The Olympic moments that tested Cysique

The French judoka faced frightening situation at the Tokyo Olympics on July 26, 2021, when she met Kosovo’s Nora Gjakova in the women’s 57 kg final. With around 2:45 remaining, Cysique attempted an uchi-mata, but Gjakova countered the attack, sending Cysique over and leaving her head and neck dangerously close to the tatami.

Cysique’s head struck the mat, and her neck became caught in the movement near the edge of the competition area. The referee ruled the action dangerous and gave Cysique a hansoku-make, an immediate disqualification. The decision ended her bid for Olympic gold, leaving Gjakova with the title and Cysique with silver.

Her next Olympic campaign in Paris brought another setback, although this time it was not an injury. Cysique reached the semifinal of the women’s 57 kg event at the 2024 Games, where she faced Canada’s Christa Deguchi. The bout went into golden score before Cysique received a third penalty after putting her fingers inside Deguchi’s judogi during a ground exchange.

Despite that disappointment, Cysique bounced back to claim individual bronze in Paris. She also helped France win mixed-team gold, adding another Olympic medal to her collection.