The battle for gold saw a replay of the Tokyo 2020 gold medal bout between Cysique and Olympic champion Nora Gjakova of Kosovo.

On that occasion, Cysique was disqualified for a head dive, however in Astana she earned victory by fair means with a well-executed utsuri-goshi earning a clear ippon.

In the bronze medal fights, Qi Cai of China beat Britain’s Acelya Toprak in golden score, while Julię Beurskens of the Netherlands overcame Arleta Podolak of Poland, after Podolak was penalised for repeatedly stepping out of the arena.

In the men’s under-66kg category, Spain’s David Garcia Torne continued his upward rise as fresh from a recent win at the Upper Austria Grand Prix a few weeks ago, he took gold in Astana.

Up against home fighter Gusman Kyrgyzbayev, Garcia Torne secured gold with a late waza-ari.

In the contests for bronze, Maxime Gobert of France took victory over Mukhriddin Tilovo of Uzbekistan, after repeated penalties for Tilovo, while Alberto Gaitero Martin of Spain defeated Karamat Huseynov of Azerbaijan by an ippon during golden score.

There was jubilation for the home fans in the men’s under-60kg, as Kazakhstan’s Magzhan Shamshadin took victory seven and a half minutes into golden score with a yoko-guruma to overcome Cédric Revol of France, the top seed.

In the bronze medal contests Doston Ruziev claimed a second Grand Slam medal after opponent Mehrzod Sufiev of Tajikistan received a third shido.

The other bronze went to Tornike Tsjakadoea of the Netherlands, who took the medal when Gamzat Zairbekov, competing as a neutral, was disqualified for using his head in defence to avoid a throw.

In the women’s under-48kg, Assunta Scutto of Italy justified her favouritism as top seed, taking gold over Laura Martinez Abelenda of Spain thanks to a fast seoi-nage in golden score.

In the bronze medal bouts, Uzbekistan’s Khalimajon Kurbonova took victory over Italian Francesca Milani courtesy of a ko-uchi gake, which led to what proved to be the crucial waza-ari to separate the judokas.

Meanwhile, Kristina Dudina, competing as a neutral, took the second bronze thanks to a late ko-uchi-gari, which was enough to defeat Galiya Tynbayeva of Kazakhstan.

The competition in Astana was formerly a Grand Prix level event, before becoming a Grand Slam this year, offering points towards qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

An Opening Ceremony was held prior to competition, with the deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin saying the tournament was on its official plan of sports and culture events for the country.

"Hosting this exciting competition in Astana, with the participation of strong competitors, shows how much attention is paid to the sport in our country," said Zhumangarin.

"Undoubtedly, it is a significant event in the country’s history.

"Taking this opportunity, I would like to thank the IJF for their support with the organisation of a major sports competition in our country."