Guilheiro will dispute the Tunis Grand Prix this Saturday

The Olympic medalist Leandro Guilheiro (-81kg) will be representing Brazil this Saturday (8) in the Grand Prix in Tunis, stage of the Judo World Circuit that will open the season of raking for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Leandro will face on the first round the Italian judoka Francesco Bruyere, silver medalist at the World Championshio 2005. Guilheiro is the only Brazilian athlete in this tournament. In all, 49 countries and 349 judokas will be competing in the GP in Tunis.

The Tunis Grand Prix will be the first international competition for Leandro Guilheiro since his gold medal in Paris. The judoka has been in the country for the last days practicing for the competition. Besides being a test for the Grand Slam in Rio de Janeiro and the World Cup in São Paulo, Leandro believes that the tournament is a chance to win points for the world ranking. Currently, Guilheiro has 420 points and is number 11 on the list. At the GP in Tunisia, the gold medal is worth 200 points, the silver is worth 120 and the bronze is worth 80 points.

“It will be a good opportunity to win points and also an interesting try out for the following events of the season”, said Leandro Guilheiro.

The judoka will have an unprecedented experience this time. For the first time, he will be the only Brazilian at a competition.

“I’m curious to see how this will turn out to be, because throughout my entire career I have been never been all by myself at a competition. It’s weird not having another athlete to share the room, to talk to and to help me during warm-up. However, I’m sure it will be a valid experience”, commented Guilheiro.