Despite disappointments last year, Marti Malloy is still on track for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
Whidbey Island’s judo Olympian took home a gold medal last month in the Judo Grand Prix in Havana, Cuba. The win was a welcome victory after tough year, Malloy said Monday.
“I was so pleased to go to Cuba and come back with a gold medal,” Malloy said. “I’m not letting the disappointments of 2015 get me down.”
Malloy said a serious concussion and a defeat in at the Tokyo Grand Slam in December made 2015 a difficult year. Coming home with the gold from Cuba raised her ranking from 12 to six, essentially securing her Olympic spot. Malloy won a bronze medal in the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games.
“I spend a lot of time every day thinking about the Olympics,” Malloy said. “It all pays off in Rio.”
For the next six months Malloy will be focused on training and competing around the world in preparation for the Olympics. But a return to Whidbey Island is on the agenda.
“I’m really looking forward to finishing the Olympics and coming back to celebrate on Whidbey,” Malloy said.
Courtesy of: Whidbey Daily News