TT JUDOKA Gabriella Wood won gold at the British University and College Sport (BUCS) Championships in the women’s judo +78kg category for the second consecutive year at the University of Wolverhampton in Walsall, England recently.

Representing the University of Stirling where she is doing a degree in sports studies, Wood won all four of her qualifying matches by decisively throwing and pinning (

ippon) her opponents to the mat.

As a result of this performance, she has been invited to compete at the European University Championships to be held in Croatia in June.

Also, two weeks ago Wood won gold at the Scottish Student Judo Championships.

These two events mark the beginning of a crucial year for Wood as she seeks to qualify for her second Olympic Games, scheduled for Paris next year.