Great Britain fans did not have to wait long for a second medal in the judo as Karina Bryant defeated Ukraine's Iryana Kindzerska to claim a bronze medal in the +78kg weight category.

Going into the London 2012 Olympics there had not been a medal for Team GB in any judo weight class for 12 years, but all that changed yesterday when Gemma Gibbons claimed a silver medal after losing in the final to American Kayla Harrison.

Karina Bryant
Karina Bryant celebrates winning bronze [Reuters]

For years Bryant had carried the weight of expectation on her shoulders, but after the achievements of Gibbons she seemed more relaxed and managed to win her first medal in her fourth Olympics.

After losing in her semi-final to number two seed Mika Sugimoto of Japan, Bryant fell behind in the bronze medal clash to a waza-ari from the Ukrainian before levelling things up with the same move.

The Surrey heavyweight then fell behind to a yuko before a second waza-ari gave her an ippon to seal the victory and land a medal 12 years after her first appearance at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Bryant had never come close to challenging for a medal at an Olympic Games having been knocked out twice in the last 16 and once in the quarter-finals, but the 33-year-old refused to admit defeat and excelled throughout.

"You know I'm not sure this will definitely be my last Games. I really felt I had unfinished business. I've had an amazing career and now I have this medal. This is my fourth Olympic Games but I've really enjoyed it. I don't want to focus on what happens after this. I won't rule out Rio just yet," said Bryant.

"Although I had lottery funding, I've really struggled financially. It's been hard. My car kept breaking down. I had a really battered up Golf. My mum helped me financially - she lives in Australia but she's always supported me. Then a lovely couple, Roger and Heather, also came in and helped me out."

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