Every Olympic champion has a beginning but only a select few can trace their journey all the way back to Cadet European Championship gold. Long before they stood atop Olympic podiums, these judoka were already making their mark on the continental stage. From Moscow to Paris, their stories reveal a fascinating pattern: the road to Olympic greatness often begins much earlier than many realise.
THE FIRST
At the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, a former Cadet European Champion became an Olympic champion for the very first time. France’s Angelo Parisi, who had claimed cadet European gold in Bordeaux in 1970, reached the pinnacle of the sport by winning Olympic gold in the +95 kg category in the Soviet capital.
Parisi went on to collect four Olympic medals in total: a bronze medal in the open category at Munich 1972, gold in the +95 kg division and silver in the open category at Moscow 1980, and silver in the +95 kg category at Los Angeles 1984. He was also a two-time Junior European Champion and a four-time Senior European Champion.
THE SECOND
The story of Greece’s Ilias Iliadis reads like a fairytale. Not yet sixteen years old when he won the Cadet European title in Győr in 2002, he went on to become Olympic champion just two years later in Athens, delighting the home crowd and becoming the second-youngest Olympic judo champion in history.
Iliadis later won three Senior World Championship titles and added two U23 European titles, as well as two Senior European crowns, to his remarkable collection.
THE THIRD
Azerbaijan’s Elnur Mammadli stood atop the Cadet European Championship podium in Rotterdam in 2004 before going on to win Olympic gold in the -73 kg category at Beijing 2008. During his career, he also secured two Senior European Championship titles.
THE FOURTH
Russia’s Arsen Galstyan captured Cadet European gold in Salzburg in 2005 in the -60 kg category and repeated the feat on the biggest stage of all, becoming Olympic champion in the same weight class at London 2012. His distinguished career also included European titles at both junior and senior level.
THE FIFTH
Russia’s Khasan Khalmurzaev won the Cadet European Championships in Koper in 2009 (-73 kg). He later added U23 European gold in 2011 and Senior European gold in 2016. The crowning achievement of his career, however, came at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, where he claimed the Olympic title in the -81 kg category.
THE SIXTH
One of the sport’s greatest stars, France’s Clarisse Agbegnenou, also enjoyed success at cadet level, winning the Cadet European Championships in Sarajevo in 2008. Her career has been filled with extraordinary achievements: five Senior European titles, six World Championship gold medals, and five Olympic medals.
She became Olympic champion individually in Tokyo 2021 and won team Olympic gold both in Tokyo and again in Paris 2024. In addition, she claimed individual Olympic silver in Rio 2016 and individual Olympic bronze in Paris 2024.
THE SEVENTH
Georgia’s Lasha Bekauri became Cadet European Champion in Kaunas in 2017 and later added European titles at both junior and senior level. At the Olympic Games, however, he achieved something even more remarkable, winning consecutive Olympic gold medals in Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024.
THE EIGHTH
Azerbaijan’s Hidayat Heydarov won the Cadet European Championships twice, taking gold in Tallinn in 2013 and Athens in 2014, both in the -66 kg category. He claimed European titles in every age group, adding two junior, one U23 and four senior continental crowns to his two cadet gold medals.
In 2024, he achieved judo’s version of a Grand Slam, winning European, World and Olympic gold all within the same calendar year.
THE NINTH
Slovenia’s Andreja Leški won the Cadet European title in Athens in 2014 in the -52 kg category and later became Senior European Champion in the -63 kg division in 2023. In 2024, she etched her name into the sport’s history books by winning Olympic gold in Paris.
THE TENTH
Croatia’s Barbara Matić claimed Cadet European gold in Teplice in 2010. A decade later, she established herself among the world’s elite, winning back-to-back World Championship titles in 2021 and 2022. In 2024, she delighted the home crowd by winning the European Championships in Zagreb before completing a dream season with Olympic gold in Paris.
THE ELEVENTH
Azerbaijan’s Zelym Kotsoiev became a two-time Cadet European Champion, winning in Athens in 2014 and Sofia in 2015. He later added European titles at both junior and senior level and, in 2024, completed a sensational double by becoming both World and Olympic Champion.
THE RED BACK PATCH
Among today’s reigning world champions are several former Cadet European Champions. Italy’s Assunta Scutto won cadet European gold in Warsaw in 2019, Georgia’s Eteri Liparteliani in Vantaa in 2016, Russia’s Timur Arbuzov in Riga in 2021, Russia’s Matvey Kanikovskiy in Sarajevo in 2018, and fellow Russian Inal Tasoev in Sofia in 2015.
All five earned the coveted red back patch by becoming world champions most recently at the 2025 World Championships in Budapest.
Who Will Be Next?
Eleven Olympic champions. Countless European and World titles. A pathway that began not on the Olympic stage but on the cadet tatami. As a new generation prepares to compete for continental honours between 29 June to 2 July 2026 in Gran Canaria , history suggests that among today’s Cadet European Champions may well be tomorrow’s Olympic legends. The question is not if another name will join this distinguished list but who will be next.
Author: EJU Media