GLASGOW: Asmita Dey became the first ever Indian judoka to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games as she produced a spirited comeback to clinch the women's - 48kg title, defeating Canada's Heidi Quach in a dramatic golden score contest here on Friday.
Ever since the introduction of judo as a medal sport in CWG in the 1990 in Auckland, Indian judokas have won medals at all editions but never secured a top-of-the-podium finish.
The 23-year-old Asmita from Tripura found herself on the back foot early in the final after conceding a yuko and then receiving a penalty, allowing Quach to take control of the bout.
However, Asmita responded brilliantly, attacking with greater intent and levelling the scores at 1-1 shortly after the midway stage of the four-minute contest.
Neither judoka could find the decisive score during regulation time despite a series of intense exchanges, forcing the match into the Golden Score period, where the first scoring action determines the winner.
Maintaining her composure under pressure, Asmita launched a decisive attack in sudden-death overtime and earned another yuko to seal a memorable victory and hand India the gold medal.
The triumph capped an impressive campaign for the young judoka, who showed remarkable resilience to recover from an early deficit and outfight her Canadian opponent in a gripping final.