Judo national team member of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Aleksandra Samardzic, won a silver medal at the fifth edition of the Sarajevo European Judo Open, which began yesterday in Sarajevo.
The BiH Olympian reached the final of the category up to 70 kilograms with convincing victories, and then, in a very uncertain final, was defeated by the national team member Sarah Mehlau.
“It is always nice to climb on the winner’s podium, especially if it is an international competition for which the Judo Federation of BiH is the technical organizer and host. I am sorry that the good performance was not crowned with gold but still I am glad because of this success”, said Aleksandra Samardzic after the fight.
Unfortunately, Aleksandra missed the opportunity to become only the second competitor who has, on two occasions, won gold at the Sarajevo European Open since it has been held (in 2021).
Unlike Aleksandra, her national team colleagues, male and female, who competed yesterday did not achieve more notable results, while some of them will compete today.
The European Judo Union (EJU) is raising standards from year to year because of which the technical organization is more and more demanding.
“For us this is a special day, we are proud that we are hosts of a competition that attracts elite judokas to our country”, said the president of the Judo Federation of BiH Ognjen Pavlovic during the ceremony of the official opening, and thanked everyone who contributed to the organization of such a sports event with special thanks to the EJU and president Laszlo Toth.
Rich experience in organizing major competitions is a facilitating circumstance for the Judo Federation of BiH, which was also admitted by Branislav Crnogorac.
“A multitude of major international tournaments and competitions that we have organized in the past have polished us into very successful hosts and organizers. We are proud of the recognitions that we have received in past years from the EJU for successful technical organizations. They are certainly an additional obligation but also a motivation”, said Crnogorac.
The competition of the second day of the Sarajevo European Open begins today from 10 a.m., when the preliminary fights start, while the final block begins at 2 p.m.
