The script of the -81kg category was torn apart early when Spain’s Iñaki Baztán Merchan stunned everyone by eliminating the reigning junior European champion and world bronze medallist, Suleyman Shukurov (AZE). The top seed was gone, the draw wide open, and Baztán Merchan seized the moment. With two more victories, he marched into the final and suddenly looked like a man of destiny.
From the other half of the draw came Mihajlo Simin (SRB), cutting through his opponents with grit and determination. His hardest battle, he admitted later, came in the semi-final against Joshua De Lange (NED), a rematch of a painful defeat three years earlier. This time, Simin had the answers, avenging the loss and securing his ticket to the gold-medal contest.
The final was chess on the tatami. Every step calculated, every grip contested. The clock ran down with no score, no penalties, nothing to separate them. Then came golden score…, and that’s when Simin struck. With razor-sharp precision, he launched an impeccably controlled ko-uchi-gake, using his superb te-waza to flatten Baztán Merchan and seal the title. No wild celebrations, no roaring release, just a calm walk back to the edge of the mat, hand raised as if to say: this is it, finally.
Afterward, the Serbian champion explained the deeper meaning behind his composure:
“It feels amazing because last year, I was also seeded, and I lost in the first round. It was so disappointing, I didn’t know what I was doing wrong. I now know, it’s all about consistency. If you train year by year, as hard as you can, then no one can stop you. When success comes, people think it happened overnight, but only I know the hard work of the past year.
“The difference today was mental strength. Physical power is important, but if you’re strong enough mentally, no one can stop you. The hardest fight was the semi-final with Joshua De Lange, he beat me three years ago, and today I proved I was on his level. The highlight? Always the last fight. That final moment, when I scored, I will remember it for the rest of my life.”
Bronze medals went to Szymon Szulik (POL) and Akhmed Turluev (IJF). For Simin, though, this wasn’t just about a medal. It was about redemption, resilience, and proving to himself, and everyone else, that persistence pays off.
Author: Szandra Szogedi