Author: Alan Marchal
Once again, nearly 300 judoka from 30 different countries will meet on the mat of the Olympic Training Camp in Herstal (Belgium) between 2-5 February 2026.
“Bringing together so many athletes is always a source of pride,” says Frédéric Treuttens, President of Judo Wallonie Bruxelles, the Belgian French-speaking federation in charge of organising the Herstal EJU OTC. “And what makes us very happy is to see that we still manage to attract new delegations over the years. This year, for example, several Brazilian judoka have decided to join us, which was not the case in previous editions. Our new Head Coach, Pedro Guedes, has obviously found the right words to convince his compatriots to make the jump to Herstal.”
Organised a few days before the Paris Grand Slam, the Belgian training camp also succeeds once again in mixing great stars of world judo, such as the world number one Eteri Liparteliani (GEO/-57kg) or former world champion Matthias Casse (BEL/-81kg), with great promises of the discipline. “We are honoured that a lot of judoka in the IJF Top 10 ranking will be present in Herstal. Bringing together judoka of the quality of Zelim Tckaev (AZE/-81kg) or Nugzari Tatalashvili (UAE/-81kg) in Belgium is incredible but we also remain very attentive to the fact that promising young athletes can also participate in our OTC. For these future champions, it is always a great opportunity to improve and gain experience with confirmed judoka,” says Frédéric Treuttens.
Full schedule can be found here.
Notable athletes registered for the Herstal EJU OTC
Eteri Liparteliani (GEO #1 / -57 kg)
Zelim Tckaev (AZE #5 / -81 kg)
Yusifov Ahmad (AZE #13 / -60 kg)
Sofia Asvesta (CYP 18 / -52 kg)
Matthias Casse (BEL #7 / -81 kg)
Jorre Verstraeten (BEL #10 / -60 kg)
Nugzari Tatalashvili (UAE #9 / -81 kg)
Makhmadbekov Makhmadbek (UAE #8 / -73 kg)
Khorloodoi Bishrelt (UAE #14 / -52 kg)
Author: EJU Media