Author: Latvian Judo Federation
The European Judo Tour returned to the Latvian capital on Saturday, 21 March, as the Riga Senior European Cup 2026 opened at the Rīgas Nacionālā Sporta Manēža. Though plenty was on offer, some of the standout performances belonged to Nina Cvjetko of Croatia, Narek Vardanian of Sweden and Florian Boecker of Germany.
In the women’s -63kg category, Cvjetko was dominant from the first bout to the last, winning all three of her contests on the way to the top of the podium. The Croatian judoka saw off a strong field that included athletes from Ukraine (Iia Kuchava) and Sweden (Naemi Jaworowski) before defeating yet another Swedish judoka, Vilda Backlund in the final just after the two minutes mark, where Cvjetko scored for waza-ari with a powerful harai-maki-komi and instantly finished the contest in osae-komi.
After the competition, Cvjetko spoke of her satisfaction with the day’s work, describing the victory as a personal challenge she was proud to meet. She emphasised that in judo, concentration cannot drop for a single second; every moment of every contest matters. The Croatian champion is already looking ahead, with the European Senior Cup in Croatia next on her schedule, a competition she is eagerly anticipating. Added to the celebration that her sister, Jana took bronze in the -70kg category.
On the men’s side, Florian Boecker produced the result of his career in the -66kg category, claiming gold and earning his first-ever medal on the European Judo Tour. The German athlete had a demanding road to the final, with the semi-final proving to be the toughest test of the day, a contest against a team-mate he described as an extremely strong opponent. Coming through that bout gave him the confidence and momentum to go all the way.
Boecker was thrilled with the outcome, saying it was an amazing feeling to finally stand on the European Tour podium. After a day of intense competition, the German champion is planning to take a well-earned rest before returning to the circuit.
Notably, 2025 Junior European silver medallist Narek Vardanian (SWE) was in outstanding form throughout the day, excelling in the -73kg category, which featured 40 judoka. In the final, he confidently defeated top seed Vlad Mitru (MDA). Just like Boecker, the young Swede rose to the occasion.
The Riga Senior European Cup 2026 continues on Sunday, 22 March, with further weight categories on the programme, men’s -81kg, -90kg, -100kg and +100kg as well as the women’s -48kg, -52kg and -57kg. Watch live on JudoTV.
Check out the full gallery via the following link.
Author: EJU Media