Astana Opens with Upsets, Clinical Finishes and a Golden European Double

The first day of the IBSA Judo Grand Prix Astana brought exactly the kind of tension that keeps a tournament alive from the opening rounds to the last final. Big names were in the draw, but rankings did not control everything. Several athletes broke the expected order, and a few standout performances gave day one its own identity.

For Europe, the clearest highlights came through Florin Alexandru Bologa of Romania and Maria Manzanero Ruiz of Spain. Both found their way to gold, but in very different circumstances.

Bologa once again showed why he remains such a major force in J1M -70 kg. The Paralympic champion moved through the early rounds with assurance and reached the final against Viktor Rudenko. But the gold medal contest could not be fought because Rudenko was injured, leaving Bologa to accept the title after bowing to the referee. It was not the ending anyone would have wanted for a final, but the Romanian’s control through the day had already underlined his status.

Florin Alexandru Bologa stayed in command of J1M -70 kg from start to finish.

Maria Manzanero Ruiz delivered one of the sharpest European stories of the day in J1W -52 kg. Her morning session set the tone immediately, especially after beating the top seed in her first contest. That result clearly opened the door, but she still had to finish the job.

In the final, she met Victoria Potapova in a tight match where very little separated the two. Manzanero Ruiz managed to score a single yuko, and that proved enough to secure gold. It was a composed and disciplined finish after an already excellent run through the category.

Spain also reached the podium elsewhere. In J2W -60 kg, Marta Arce Payno claimed bronze as Daria Stakanova dominated the round robin field without conceding a point or even a Shido. In J2M -70 kg, Sergio Ibanez Banon, the top seed, fell short of the final but still recovered for bronze after a day that had already turned against the rankings.

That category produced one of the most dramatic technical moments of the day. Sherzod Namozov and Ibragim Nurmakhanuly advanced to the final despite seeded rivals going out early. Namozov tried to impose his tomoe-nage, but a positional mistake changed everything. Nurmakhanuly read it perfectly, moved into osaekomi, and held for the full 20 seconds to take Ippon and the title.

Another late twist came in J1M -81 kg. Danilo David Geronimo Silva looked on course for gold after scoring a yuko with a well-timed tomoe-nage late in the final against Shokhrukh Mamedov. But Mamedov answered in the final seconds with Ippon, turning the match around in one decisive moment.

There were more strong podium results across the women’s categories. Gülhan Atasayar of Türkiye took silver in J2W -60 kg, while Zeynep Bozdemir of Türkiye and Carmen Brussig of Switzerland both earned bronze in J2W -52 kg.

The final gold medal of the day went to Bexultan Kulmurza in J2M -81 kg. His final against Donghoon Kim was intense from the grip fight onward, but one yuko was enough to settle it.

Astana’s opening day set a fast pace: dominant runs, sudden reversals, and a pair of European golds that stood out in a highly competitive field. If this was only the beginning, day two has a lot to live up to.

Source: IJF.org

Image source: IJF / International Judo Federation