Azerbaijani Judo Team Wins Five Medals In Austria

The Azerbaijani judo team has won five medals at the Graz Junior European Cup held in Austria, AzerNEWS reports.

Competing in the 90 kg weight category, Suleyman Shukurov defeated all of his opponents and claimed the gold medal.

On his way to the final, he overcame representatives from Romania, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Hungary, and Germany.

In the decisive match, Suleyman defeated Brazilian athlete Joao Pedro Canello by a narrow scoring advantage to claim the title

Roman Garayev (81 kg), Aslan Kotsoev (90 kg), and Ramazan Ahmadov (+100 kg) finished the tournament with bronze medals.

On the first day of the competition, Mahammad Musayev (-66 kg) had already won a gold medal.

As a result, the Azerbaijani team completed the European Cup with two gold and three bronze medals.

Among the boys' teams, Azerbaijan finished second out of 34 countries, while placing third in the overall medal standings.

The 2026 Graz Junior European Cup was organized under the auspices of the International Judo Federation (IJF) and the European Judo Union (EJU).

It brought together 686 athletes from 34 countries across four continents, making it one of the largest junior judo competitions of the season.

The competition took place at Raiffeisen Sportpark Graz, where young judokas competed in multiple men's and women's weight categories.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art worldwide.

The President of the Azerbaijan Judo Federation is Rashad Nabiyev, who also serves as the Minister of Digital Development and Transportation.

The country's modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka, Elchin Ismayilov, became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

The list of the country's top judo fighters includes Rustam Orujov, Irina Kindzerskaya, Mammadali Mehdiyev, Elmar Gasimov, Hidayat Heydarov, Zelim Kotsoev, Ushangi Kokauri, and Nijat Shikhalizada.

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