As the sun set on the second and final day of the Skopje Junior European Cup 2025, it was Azerbaijan (4-1-1) who stood tallest, finishing at the top of the overall medal table. Türkiye (2-2-1) secured second place, while Israel (1-2-4). finished third. In total, 10 nations earned at least one gold medal, and an impressive 21 of the 26 participating countries featured on the medal table, a testament to the strength and depth of competition in the heart of North Macedonia.
Slovakia’s golden girl, Patricia Tomanková, delivered a commanding performance in the -48kg category. In the final, she faced Bulgaria’s Sofia Rangelova and what began as a tactical chess match turned into a masterclass from the Slovakian ace. With less than a minute on the clock, Tomanková reacted with a sharp Te-waza counter, bringing her opponent down and securing a yuko score. She then followed the momentum with an osaekomi-waza. Although Rangelova escaped the hold-down just in time, conceding only a waza-ari, Tomanková swiftly capitalised with a seamless juji-gatame to secure victory. With the European Championships on home soil fast approaching, Tomanková shared her aspirations post-podium:
“My next goal is to win a medal at the European Championships, which is being held in my country. That’s why it’s so important to me. This was my final competition before the championships, so I hope I can do even better.”
In the -100kg category, Estonia’s Jakob Vares emerged victorious following a thrilling final against Belarusian judoka Yauheni Morau. Morau took early control, registering a waza-ari within the first 90 seconds. However, Vares stayed composed and, three minutes into the contest, levelled the score with a clean Ippon-seoi-nage. As the clock wound down, Morau launched a bold Ko-uchi-gake attempt straight off the grip but Vares evaded beautifully and countered with textbook Te-waza, throwing Morau flat for ippon. Following the medal ceremony, Vares kept his words brief, but his excitement for the fast-approaching junior European Championships was unmistakable: “I will be representing my country at European Championships in Slovakia. Right now, I just won the gold medal so see you guys there.”
That concludes the action from Skopje, for now. In just over a month, the city has successfully hosted the Cadet European Championships 2025, the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF), and now a junior European Cup. It has been an intense and inspiring stretch of judo events, delivered with remarkable commitment and efficiency by the National Judo Federation of North Macedonia and their efforts are far from over. Skopje will next welcome the judo family for the senior European Cup, scheduled for 20–21 September 2025.
Images: Bojan Ilieski
Author: Szandra Szogedi