JUDOKA Natalie Powell has slipped one place in the world rankings after a fifth place finish at the latest Grand Slam event in Russia.
Powell, who competes in the -78kg category, finished in fifth at the Ekaterinburg Grand Slam and is now placed fifth in the Judo World Ranking List.
Powell beat Serjmyadag Shurenchimeg, of Mongolia, and Russian Aleksandra Babintseva but lost to Japanese fighters Mao Izumi and Rika Takayama.
It was Powell’s third fifth place finish this year following a fifth at the Dusseldorf Grand Slam in Germany, where she narrowly missed out on a bronze, in February. She opened 2019 in fifth in Israel and gained a seventh place at the Paris Grand Slam at the beginning of February.
Her performance in Russia means Powell has placed in all of her international competitions dating back to October 2018.