Diop sparks Senegal celebration with landmark Dakar 2026 medal

Matar Diop gave Senegal a defining Judo moment on the opening day of Judo at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games. The -66 kg judoka claimed bronze in front of a home crowd, delivering the host nation’s first medal of the Games across all sports.

Diop faced Nathan Gbingbehi of France in a bronze-medal contest charged with energy from the moment both athletes stepped onto the tatami. Backed loudly by Senegalese supporters, Diop struck first with a yuko from O-uchi-gari. Gbingbehi answered midway through the contest, levelling the score with a yuko from Uchi-mata.

Neither judoka could find a winning score in normal time despite repeated low Sode-tsuri-komi-goshi attacks. In Golden Score, Diop looked tired but stayed composed under the pressure. Just 17 seconds into the extra period, he countered Gbingbehi for Waza-ari to seal the bronze medal and trigger an emotional celebration.

Diop’s bronze became Senegal’s first medal of Dakar 2026 in any sport.

The -66 kg title went to Ukraine’s Khazar Heydarov, who defeated Canada’s Anes Mati in Golden Score. Both athletes had received one Shido before Mati collected a second penalty, then a third to decide the final. Thiago Carvallo of Argentina took the other bronze when Hungary’s Nimrod Mildner was unable to compete.

Earlier, Ibrahim Talibov of Azerbaijan earned the first Judo gold medal of Dakar 2026 in the boys’ -55 kg category. Croatia’s Jona Zvorc had started quickly and scored yuko, but Talibov responded with Waza-ari before controlling the remainder of the contest. Zvorc secured silver, while Tugskhuslen Tungalag of Mongolia and Elisha Zimba of Zambia won bronze, both with Seoi-otoshi for Ippon.

Turkey’s Sema Nur Yuksel also made a powerful statement in the girls’ -44 kg final. She scored Waza-ari against Jordan’s Houda Wshah before finishing with a lively Kata-guruma to take gold. Italy’s Sara Coni added a European medal with bronze, defeating Greece’s Io Eirini Papatheodorou by Ippon through a hold-down.

For Diop, though, the result carried a special weight. His late counter created one of the standout scenes of the opening day: a Senegalese athlete on the podium, with the home crowd sharing every second of the journey.

Source: IJF.org

Image source: IJF / International Judo Federation