Szofi Özbas heads to Tbilisi backed by calm, not pressure

Szofi Özbas is approaching the European Championships in Tbilisi with the kind of confidence that comes from real results. Since moving from -63kg to -70kg, the Hungarian has collected four Grand Slam gold medals and captured the 2025 European title, her first senior continental crown. That progress gives her momentum, but she is also careful about how she carries the weight of being defending champion.

For Özbas, the final phase of preparation in Tata has been about more than just training volume. Working at home in Hungary, in a quieter and more familiar setting, seems to help her mentally as much as physically. She said she prefers calm to the different atmosphere of travelling, and she sees that sense of balance as a meaningful part of her success.

Özbas is trying to bring a clear head, not extra noise, into Tbilisi.

Her gold medal at the Paris Grand Slam in February added another high point before the European Championships. Even so, Özbas does not want to live off that feeling once competition starts. In her view, past victories can be just as distracting as past disappointments if they follow an athlete onto the tatami at the wrong moment.

That mindset carries extra depth after her experience at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where the two-time Olympian lost in the second round. Rather than allowing either memory to define the next event, she wants to rely on current preparation and do judo freely. It is a simple idea, but not an easy one at this level.

Özbas also speaks with unusual honesty about her process. She does not claim to have every detail perfectly analysed, but she trusts the work she has done in difficult sessions, recovery periods and daily routines. Even small things, like rest and afternoon naps, are part of building a complete performance.

Respect is another constant in her approach. She has stressed that support for teammates and the way athletes treat one another matter regardless of results. That gives her European title defence an interesting edge: one of Europe’s leading judoka is chasing another big moment while trying to stay fully present, fully honest and fully herself.

Source: EJU_News