The last five Grand Prix Portugal gold medals won by European judokas. IJF

The heavyweight judokas were in action in the final days of the Judo Grand Prix Portugal, the first major event of 2024, which ended this Sunday in Odivelas, a city in the north of the Greater Lisbon area.

Anna Monta Olek, the 2021 junior world champion, made a big statement in Portugal, defeating all her opponents to become the women's 78kg champion. She won the Dushanbe Grand Prix in 2023 and started the new year with another impressive victory. She beat Slovakia's Metka Lobnik in the final bout. Petrunjela Pavic from Croatia and Chloe Buttigieg from France completed an all-European podium in this weight category. 

Another young European judoka, 22-year-old Hilal Ozturk from Turkey, was the best in the women's +78 kg weight category. She defeated Japan's Miki Mukunoki in the final. The bronze medals went to Kinga Wolszczak (Poland) and Coralie Hayme (France).

Final of the women's +78 kg category between Turkey's Hilal Ozturk (in white) and Japan's Miki Mukunoki. IJF
Final of the women's +78 kg category between Turkey's Hilal Ozturk (in white) and Japan's Miki Mukunoki. IJF

Turkey won another gold medal in the men's 90 kg category. Michael Zgank, the former Slovenian judoka and 2017 world runner-up, won the second Grand Prix title of his career. Zgank, who has been representing Turkey since 2019, reached the final where he overcame Klen Kristofer Kaljulaid from Estonia. Mark van Dijk of the Netherlands and Eljan Hajiyev of Azerbaijan joined the two finalists on the European podium.

The duel between two individual neutral athletes - Arman Adamian and Matvey Kanikovskiy - was one of the most exciting rivalries of the tournament. Adamian is the reigning world champion, but Kanikovskiy is ranked higher and won the last major competition of 2023 - the Tokyo Grand Slam.

The individual neutral athlete from Russia, Matvey Kanikovskiy (in white). IJF
The individual neutral athlete from Russia, Matvey Kanikovskiy (in white). IJF

However,  Adamian surprisingly lost his first bout to Cypriot Georgios Kroussaniotakis, while Kanikovskiy stormed through to the final, where he met two-time 90kg world champion Nikoloz Sherazadishvili of Spain. Kanikovskiy clinched the victory by waza-ari, proving why he is the N1 Russian judoka at this weight. Gonchigsuren Batkhuyag (Mongolia) and Rafael Buzacarini (Brazil) took the bronze medals.

Finally, the men's super heavyweight division featured two of the strongest individual neutral athletes - reigning world champion Inal Tasoev and Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist Tamerlan Bashaev. Both made the podium, but it was Tasoev who won the gold medal defeating Kim Minjong in the final bout. Bashaev and Kanta Nakano of Japan took the bronze medals. 

The next stop for the world's best judokas is Paris, where the prestigious Paris Grand Slam begins on 2 February.