Olympic champion Ryoko Tamura was named to the Japanese national team for this summer's World Cup competition in Switzerland despite her first loss in 12 years at the women's judo weight-category national championships Sunday.
The All-Japan Judo Federation (JJF) selected Tamura at 48 kg along with newly crowned champion Tomoe Makabe after Sunday's meet at Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium.
Tamura, gold medalist at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and five-time world champion, lost to high school national champion Tomoko Fukumi in a first-round match at the national championships.
Tamura had only resumed practice a month ago after tearing ligaments in her right knee before last summer's world championships in Germany.
On Sunday, JJF officials named only one winner, Olympic bronze medalist Kie Kusakabe, to the national team for this fall's Asian Games in Pusan, South Korea.
World champion Masae Ueno was named at 70 kg on the basis of her record at major international tournaments in the past even though she lost by ippon to Asia champion Haruko Kazato in Sunday's championship final.