Patricia Tománková was the face of hope for Slovakia at the Junior European Championships 2025. Competing in Bratislava, on home soil, in front of family, friends, and an arena full of supporters, she carried the weight of expectation into the -48kg category. A first-round bye brought her smoothly into the round of 16, where she faced Vera Wandel of the Netherlands, a rival she had defeated twice before. Yet, this time, the story was different. A single contest changed everything. Tománková lost. The dream of standing atop the podium in front of her people was shattered.
As she walked off the mat, tears streamed down her face. The disbelief was visible, this was not the ending she had imagined. After some time to compose herself, she spoke softly, her voice still trembling:
“This was such an important competition for me and now I don’t know what to do. I really expected myself to win. Maybe even quicker than before. I think I disappointed myself too.”
The pressure of competing at home weighed heavily on her young shoulders. “I tried to ignore the people watching me but it was hard. Everyone expected me to win, and I just couldn’t handle it. I couldn’t do my judo,” she admitted. Unlike her European Cup experience in Šamorín, where the crowd was smaller and the stakes lower, this was different. The scale, the expectations, and her new weight category all combined to create a storm too heavy to weather.
When asked what lesson she would take from the day, Tománková paused, staring into the distance. Finally, she whispered: “I don’t know… Maybe that everyone has bad days. In judo, it really depends on small things if you win or lose. You never know what’s going to happen.”
Her sadness briefly gave way to a smile when asked about her happiest memory. “Winning my second cadet world title in Peru. That was the most joyful moment of my career so far. This year’s junior worlds will also be in Peru and I hope I can perform better there than today.”
With a smile, she found some resolve. “I already have a lot of experiences. I usually know how to handle the pressure, so it really disappoints me that today I couldn’t. I will work on it more and try to use this lesson at the World Championships.”
Finally, Tománková shared what she was most thankful for: “My family. They were all here. They never showed disappointment, they just kept cheering for me. That’s what I am most grateful for.”
Her coach, Jozef Tománek, reflected with empathy:
“It’s sad. Maybe she was under too much stress. She wasn’t completely herself on the mat, too stiff, though she did some good tactical things but this is a lesson, and I hope she comes out stronger from it.”
The gold medal dream may have slipped away for Patricia Tománková in Bratislava but her journey towards her Olympic dreams has many more chapters to come. In her heartbreak lies the fire to rise again and as her smile returned, however faint, one could already see the determination of a champion who will not let this defeat define her.
Author: Szandra Szogedi