Rafaela Silva once again showed why she's the BEST! The red-and-black judoka had a devastating campaign at the Pan American and Oceania Judo Championships, held in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), and won the gold medal by defeating Christa Deguchi, the current world champion and world number one in the under-57kg category. Thus, she completed her trio of achievements in the Marvelous City: she became world, Olympic and continental champion.

"I feel very privileged to win the top judo titles in my hometown of Rio de Janeiro. The fans never disappoint. Sometimes, like today, the fight is tough, but with this support, there's no way we'll give up. I came here focused, and these points are very important for my Olympic campaign. I'm happy with my performance and will continue working hard to win another medal in Paris 2024," said Rafaela Silva.

Two days after her 32nd birthday, and in a massive crowd of friends and family, Rafa won her third international title in her hometown. She repeated her achievements at the 2013 Judo World Championships and the 2016 Rio Olympics, where she also won gold.

"It was my best gift. I spent my birthday sucking on ice, but today with this gold medal on my chest, it was all worth it," he added.

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Rafaela needed less than 30 seconds to win her first two fights in this edition of the Pan-Oceânico.

Making her debut directly in the quarterfinals, she beat Peruvian Marian Flores in 15 seconds and then, in the semifinals, she beat American Mariah Holguin in 12 seconds.

The final, however, was tougher. She had to fight for five minutes of golden score against Canadian Christa Deguchi before winning the shidos, sending the crowd into a frenzy.