Melissa Mojica Rosario (born December 29, 1983) is a Puerto Rican

judoka is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

Early and personal life

She was born in

Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico Trujillo Alto (, ) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Northern Coastal Plain, on the boundary between the karst zone and Sierra de Luquillo, north of Caguas, and Gurabo; southeast of San Juan, and west of Carolina. Trujil ...

, on December 29, 1983. She is . Her parents are Carmelo Mojica and Julia Rosario, and she has two sisters: Melani and Julisa. Mojica went to the Medardo Carazo High School and studied

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

University of Turabo A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

Judo career

Mojica won the bronze medal in both, the open and the over 78 kg division of the

2006 Central American and Caribbean Games The 20th edition of the Central American and Caribbean Games was held in the city of Cartagena, Colombia. The tournament began on July 15 and ended on July 30. Host city *Main host city **Cartagena de Indias *Subsites: **Barranquilla, Colombia ( ...

. She won the gold medal in the 2008 Pan American Judo Championships in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. She won the gold medal in the over 78 kg and the open category, as well the silver in the team competition at the

2010 Central American and Caribbean Games The 21st Central American and Caribbean Games (Spanish: ''XXI Juegos Centroamericanos y del Caribe, Mayagüez 2010'') took place in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, from 18 July 2010 to 1 August 2010. Bid It was understood that Mayagüez was going to b ...

, held in her home country, Puerto Rico. At the

2011 Pan American Games The 2011 Pan American Games, officially the XVI Pan American Games, was an international multi-sport event that was held from October 14–30, 2011, in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Some events were held in the nearby cities of Ciudad Guzmán, ...

she lost the final to the

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Idalys Ortiz Idalys Ortiz Bocourt (born 27 September 1989) is a Cuban judoka. She competed in the over 78 kg division at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics and won a medal on each occasion. She won the silver medal in the women's +78 kg event at the 2020 ...

to win the silver medal at the +78 kg category in the regional games held in

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Mojica won in May 2012, the silver medal at the Moscow Grand Slam, after being defeated by the

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian

Maria Suelen Altheman Maria Suelen Altheman (born 12 August 1988) is a Brazilian heavyweight judoka. She won silver medals at the world championships in 2013 and 2014 and bronze medals at the Pan American Games in 2011 and 2015. She finished joint 5th at the 2012 S ...

who won her category gold medal. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, she defeated the

Saudi Saudi may refer to: * Saudi Arabia * Saudis, people from Saudi Arabia * Saudi culture, the culture of Saudi Arabia * House of Saud The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is c ...

teenager

Wojdan Shaherkani Wojdan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani (or "Shaherkani"; ar, وجدان علي سراج الدين شهرخاني; born 1 February 1996) is a Saudi judo competitor who was one of two women selected to represent the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at t ...

, who competed with a special

hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...

, in only 82 seconds. After the combat Mojica claimed that she does not care about religious issues, but every woman should have the opportunity to compete at the Olympics. She then lost to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Elena Ivashchenko Elena Ivashchenko (; rus, Елена Иващенко, Елена Шлейзе; 28 December 1984 – 15 June 2013) was a Russian judoka. Biography Ivashchenko was born in Omsk, Russia on 28 December 1984. She won a silver medal (2008) and two ...

Ippon is the highest score a fighter can achieve in a Japanese martial arts ''ippon-wazari'' contest, usually kendo, judo, karate or jujitsu. In Judo In Judo, an ippon may be scored for a throw, a pin, a choke or a jointlock. For throws, the four ...

in the second round, ending her participation in the +78 kg category at

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Achievements

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mojica, Melissa 1983 births Living people People from Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican female judoka Judoka at the 2007 Pan American Games Judoka at the 2011 Pan American Games Judoka at the 2012 Summer Olympics Judoka at the 2016 Summer Olympics Judoka at the 2019 Pan American Games Olympic judoka for Puerto Rico Pan American Games silver medalists for Puerto Rico Pan American Games medalists in judo Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Puerto Rico Central American and Caribbean Games silver medalists for Puerto Rico Central American and Caribbean Games bronze medalists for Puerto Rico Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games Competitors at the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games Competitors at the 2014 Central American and Caribbean Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in judo Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2019 Pan American Games Judoka at the 2020 Summer Olympics 20th-century Puerto Rican women 21st-century Puerto Rican women