Croatia celebrated a golden Sunday at the European Open in Sarajevo with Dominik Druzeta and Mikita Sviryd both reaching the top of the podium. It was a proud day for Croatian judo as the team proved its strength and depth across the men’s categories.
For Dominik Druzeta, this victory was more than just another medal, it marked a comeback. After more than a year away from competition, the 28-year-old from Pula returned in style, winning gold in the under-90kg category. In the final, Druzeta pinned Serbia’s Islam Sogenov early in the contest for a waza-ari, before finishing with ippon midway through the second minute. His previous European Open title came back in 2019 in Warsaw, making this triumph even more satisfying.
“I honestly didn’t expect this,” Druzeta smiled after the final. “It’s been about a year and a half since I last fought internationally. I’ve been coaching cadets and juniors, which kept me close to the sport, but being around competitions started to make me itch again.”
Having missed Olympic qualification for both Tokyo and Paris, Druzeta took time to reset. “That was a tough moment,” he said. “I needed to refocus, and coaching helped me do that. It gave me perspective.” In Sarajevo, everything came together. “Sometimes you just have one of those days when everything goes your way,” he said. “It felt like Warsaw 2019 all over again, calm and confident.”
There will be little time for rest. After the medal ceremony, Druzeta faced an eight-hour drive back to Pula where his athletes would be training the next morning. “My athletes are back on the mat tomorrow,” he laughed. “So celebration will have to wait. When I get home, I’ll celebrate quietly with my wife and our dog. This gold means a lot, it reminds me that I can still do it.”
The heavyweight final delivered another moment of glory for Croatia. Mikita Sviryd, the Belarus-born judoka now competing for Croatia, faced Stefan Kovinic in a powerful showdown. Both judoka entered the last minute with two penalties each, creating a tense atmosphere. With just 17 seconds on the clock, Sviryd made his move, scoring a waza-ari and immediately transitioning into a hold-down to seal the victory. It was his first European Open gold after taking silver earlier this year in Prague.
“This one means a lot,” Sviryd said. “I wanted to show that I belong among the best and that I deserve a stronger programme next year.”
Bosnian fighter Harun Sadikovic thrilled the home crowd by winning bronze against Britain’s Wesley Greenidge. Sadikovic, who recently returned home after several years in Dubai, injured his hamstring during the match but managed to hold on for the win. Limping off the mat, he received huge applause from the Sarajevo audience, proud to see one of their own back on the podium.
Serbia’s Dmitrii Evseev also claimed bronze, defeating Mateja Borojevic in a tactical contest.
Earlier in the day, Slovenia’s Nace Herkovic captured his first ever European Open gold medal after a strong performance in Sarajevo. In the final of the -81kg category, he overcame Jahja Nurkovic of Montenegro in a contest that started slowly but built in intensity as time went on. Nurkovic had been impressive throughout the day, collecting three solid wins, and he looked sharp early on, even appearing to take the lead with a yuko that was later annulled.
Both judoka picked up two penalties as the match reached its closing stages, and when Nurkovic launched another attack, Herkovic reacted instinctively, countering and moving straight into an oseikomi. Just five seconds of control was enough to secure the win and the gold medal, marking a memorable milestone for the Slovenian athlete.
Bosnia’s Mustafa Hebib delighted the home crowd by taking bronze after defeating Thomas Snijders of the Netherlands. Hebib scored a decisive wazari with 90 seconds to go and managed the clock well to seal victory. The Bosnian audience gave him a warm ovation as he claimed his second consecutive bronze medal on home soil in Sarajevo.
The second bronze medal went to Portugal’s Claudio Nunes dos Santos, after Turkey’s Bayram Kandemir was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Darko Brasnjovic claimed victory in the men’s -100kg final against fellow Serbian Aleksandar Stojkov. The two know each other well, having already met earlier this year at the European Cup in Podgorica, and their familiarity showed in a tense but tactical contest. This time it was Brasnjovic who came out on top, finally adding Sarajevo gold to his impressive résumé.
A bronze medallist at the same event in 2021, Brasnjovic wasted little time in the final. In the second minute, he scored waza-ari with a clean koshi-guruma and immediately transitioned into an osaekomi to secure a convincing win. Having competed internationally for more than a decade, from Cadet World Championships to the senior level, Brasnjovic has seen it all, but this gold medal clearly meant a lot. “It feels very sweet to finally win here,” he said with a smile.
In the bronze medal contests, Austria’s Michael Niederdorfer defeated Danilo Pantic of Montenegro. Niederdorfer took the lead with a yuko after three minutes and managed the final exchanges with composure, keeping Pantic at bay until the end.
Britain’s Rhys Thompson also finished on the podium. The number one seed built a comfortable lead with waza-ari and yuko against Jonathan Bischoff of Germany and held firm to secure bronze after his earlier semi-final loss to Brasnjovic.
Watch our Photo gallery for all the action and beautyshots of the European Open in Sarajevo.
The next big event is the European U23 Championships next week in Chisinau, Moldova.
Judoka
Author: Hans Van Essen