TOURNAMENTS in collegiate competitions in Japan are in store for Fil-Japanese standout Kiyomi Watanabe.
The Philippine Judo Federation has this in mind after Watanabe settled for a bronze medal in the semifinals of the International Judo Federation World Judo Tour Paris Grand Slam in France.
PJF president Dave Carter said her participation in tough collegiate meets in Japan will help prepare her for the 2017 Southeast Asian Games.
Watanabe made history for the Philippines when she won over Lucy Renshall of Great Britain in the Under-63 kilogram division.
Her feat handed the Philippines its first-ever medal in the IJF World Judo Tour.
Watanabe topped Pool D after she prevailed over Daniela Kazanoi of Belarus, Junxia Yang of China and Daria Davydova of Russia to gain a semifinal seat.
The 20-year-old Watanabe, a gold medalist in the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, went to the repechage after bowing to Clarisse Agbegnenou of France in the semifinals.
She then claimed a bronze when she defeated Renshall.
In getting ready for the SEA Games, she is also set to join meets in Austria and Germany in the IJF Grand Prix calendar.
