386 competitors from 51 countries will take to the tatami this weekend at the Tbilisi Grand Slam 2026, running from 20-22 March.
The latest stop on the 2026 IJF World Judo Tour arrives just weeks before the 2026 European Championships, also set to take place in the Georgian capital from 16-19 April.
With the same arena, the Olympic Sports Palace, hosting both events, this weekend offers a timely dress rehearsal for athletes and a chance for local fans to build momentum ahead of the continental showdown.
Tbilisi Grand Slam 2026: Athletes to watch
Europe’s highest-ranked athlete in action is -70kg world number one Lara Cvejtko. The Croatian world silver medallist makes her first Grand Slam appearance of 2026 after a standout season that brought three World Tour gold medals, alongside a European Championship bronze last year. She faces a demanding field, led by Japan’s reigning world champion Shiho Tanaka, as well as European challengers Michaela Polleres (AUT), Ida Eriksson (SWE) and Tais Pina (POR).
Croatia’s strength continues in the category below, with teammate Iva Oberan coming in as the second seed in the women’s -63kgs, followed by former world champion Joanne Van Lieshout of the Netherlands.
The women’s -52kg category is another dominated by European talent, with the top six seeds all representing the continent. Hungary’s Reka Pupp leads the draw, followed by Israel’s Gefen Primo, who returns to competition for the first time since November last year.
A similar pattern emerges in the -78kg division, where Slovenia’s Metka Lobnik leads a strong European lineup that includes Great Britain’s Emma Reid and Germany’s double European champion Alina Boehm. In the women’s heavyweight category, Raz Hershko (ISR) and Lea Fontaine (FRA) occupy the top two seeded positions.
On the men’s side, Azerbaijan’s reigning Olympic and 2024 world champion Hidayat Heydarov headlines the -73kg category. He is joined by a competitive European group featuring Portugal’s Otari Kvantidze, Italy’s Leonardo Valeriani and Great Britain’s Ethan Nairne, who recently impressed with victory at the Upper Austria Grand Prix.
The -81kg division remains as competitive as ever, with all of the top 20-ranked athletes coming from Europe. Among the leading names are top seed Vedat Albayrak of Türkiye, Georgia’s Zaur Dvalashvili and Belgium’s Matthias Casse. The depth of European talent here could offer a preview of what to expect at the upcoming European Championships.
Georgia’s triple world champion, Tato Grigalashvili, fresh from victory at -90kg at the Upper Austria Grand Prix, will not compete at this Grand Slam in Tbilisi.
Attention instead turns to the -90kg category, historically a stronghold for Georgian judo. The host nation’s leading medal hope is 2023 world champion and 2022 European champion Luka Maisuradze. After an early exit at the Paris Grand Slam earlier this year, where he fell in the second round, Maisuradze will look to respond on home soil.
Despite five Grand Slam medals and a world title, he is still chasing his first Grand Slam gold. Can he get that first Grand Slam title on home soil? We’ll see what 2017 world champion Nemanja Majdov of Serbia has to say about that.
Another former world champion returning is Portugal’s Jorge Fonseca, competing in just his second event since last year’s World Championships. He claimed bronze at the Upper Austria Grand Prix earlier this month. This -100kg category is led by the Netherlands’ Simeon Catharina, alongside Hungary’s Zsombor Veg.
In the men’s +100kg division, the Netherlands again features prominently, with Jur Spijkers entering as the top seed. He is followed by Azerbaijan’s Kana Nasibov and Finland’s 2023 European champion Martti Puumalainen.
Unsurprisingly, the host nation fields the largest delegation.
Georgia enters 42 athletes, 28 men and 14 women, across all 14 weight categories. The reigning mixed team world champions continue to build depth across both divisions, something that will be on full display this weekend and, they hope, again at the European Championships next month.
Follow all the action live on JUDOTV.COM
Tbilisi Grand Slam 2026: schedule
Friday, 20 March
Men: -60 kg, -66 kg
Women: -48 kg, -52 kg, -57 kg
Preliminaries: 10:00
Final Block: 17:00
Saturday, 21 March
Men: -73 kg, -81 kg
Women: -63 kg, -70 kg
Preliminaries: 10:30
Final Block: 17:00
Sunday, 22 March
Men: -90 kg, -100 kg, +100 kg
Women: -78 kg, +78 kg
Preliminaries: 10:30
Final Block: 17:00
Author: EJU Media