Ann Simons

Ann Simons (born August 5, 1980 in Tongern ) is a former Belgian judoka . She was Olympic third in 2000 and three times European championship third.

Athletic career

The 1.61 m tall Ann Simons competed in the super lightweight. In this weight class she was Belgian champion in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2005. In 1996 she was second behind Isabelle Montmorency in the Belgian championships, in 1997 she lost to Ilse Heylen in the final . In 1998 Ann Simons won bronze at the Junior World Championships and the Junior European Championships. In 1999 she won bronze in the adult class at the European Championships, and in the same year she became European Junior Champion. At the 2000 Olympic Games, she lost to the German Anna-Maria Gradante in the quarter-finals , but fought her way to the bronze medal with three wins in the hope round .

At the European Championships in 2001 Simons reached the semifinals. After her defeat against the French Frédérique Jossinet , she won the battle for bronze against the Spaniard Vanesa Arenas . In 2002 she finished seventh at the European Championships, in 2003 she won bronze again. In 2005 she finished fifth at both the European Championships and the World Championships . In 2006 Ann Simons ended her career after a knee injury.

Web links

• Ann Simons at JudoInside.com
• Ann Simons in the database of Sports-Reference (English; archived from the original )