The third day of preliminary rounds at the Millennium Team European Judo Championships Cadets Skopje 2025 delivered through the remaining two girls’ weight categories, -70kg and +70kg. The day unfolded with intense emotion, sweat, tears, and moments of joy, as the field narrowed, leaving only a few contenders still in the running for continental glory.
“It’s all about my people, my Georgians.“
The final of the -70kg category featured a thrilling clash between fourth seed Roksana Zys of Poland and third seed Keti Robakidze of Georgia. Right from the opening exchange, Zys launched a ura-nage attempt that scored yuko, setting an early tone. Robakidze responded almost immediately with a waza-ari, making it clear she was fully in contention. Barely a minute had passed, yet the contest was already packed with action.
Robakidze soon reinforced her lead with another yuko, this time from a well-executed ashi-waza. Zys, determined to close the gap, literally sprinted towards her opponent to set up for another ura-nage effort, but this time Robakidze anticipated it perfectly and took control. Following her victory, the Georgian judoka shared that her home hero is none other than Tato Grigalashvili. She explained that she drew immense motivation from Georgia’s recent team gold medal at the Senior World Championships. Still bursting with emotions, she reflected further:
“I don’t… I don’t… It’s hard to say what’s happening to me now, because once this was my dream, and now it’s come true. I can’t believe it. Now I want to see my coaches’ faces, my parents, the Georgian people. They always support me, every day, every training. They give me motivation, and that’s why I am here. That’s why today I became a champion… and this is not the end.”
“Soon it’s the World Championships”. she continues. “And I will give everything to become a champion once again. I always dream so big, to become a World and Olympic Champion. It doesn’t matter. It’s all about my people, my Georgians. They are so special to me. Thank you all for supporting me, thank you all for giving me everything, and thank you for these emotions. I am so happy.“
“In the final I was so emotional at the start and just because this girl [referring to Zys] threw me first, I was nervous, and she scored so fast. Then I said to myself, ‘Kati, don’t give up in there. You can do it. Everyone is by your side.’ Like, when she grabbed me by uranage, first my head was a mess, but then when I did ouchi, it was ippon! And when the referee showed ippon, my eyes were full of stars. It was amazing. But it was so hard. This girl is a future champion. I want to support her every time, she’s so strong.” Robakidze concluded. Bronze medallist are Giorgia Grassi (ITA) and Ana Besker (CRO).
France in Control
An all-French final brought the +70kg category to a close, as top seed Emma Feuillet-Nguimgo stepped onto the tatami to face her teammate and third seed, Astan Sacko. The latter accrued two penalties within the opening ninety seconds, leaving her with no option but to push forward aggressively. With just under a minute and a half remaining, Feuillet-Nguimgo executed a well-positioned koshi-guruma to score waza-ari, a lead she successfully maintained to secure the title. Still processing her victory, Feuillet-Nguimgo later shared her joy, expressing a sense of disbelief:
“Honestly, it’s really incredible. I don’t even know, it’s just such a great feeling. I don’t think it’s fully sunk in yet, but I’m really happy. It was exactly the same final as in France, so yes, it was tough but I wouldn’t say it was my toughest fight. Still, it was really great to face another French athlete in the final. We have probably fought each other twenty times back in France. We know each other very well, we are even good friends. For me, this medal represents a lot of hard work. It’s all the effort I have put in throughout the year. Now, I am aiming for a medal at the World Championships.”
The two bronze medal winners of the category are Hatice Tuana Balci (TUR) and Antea Ajdukovic (CRO).
Images: Gabi Juan / Carlos Ferreira
Author: Szandra Szogedi