Russian Blind Judo Athletes Win 9 Medals at European Championships in Germany

From August 10 to 17, the European Blind Judo Championships were held in Heidelberg, Germany.

Following the competition, Russian judo athletes won 9 medals – 3 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze.

The champions were Daria Stakanova (60 kg, J2) and Pavel Selivanov (95 kg, J1).

Silver medals were won by Alesia Stepanyuk (52 kg, J2), Aminat Omarova (52 kg, J1), and Natalia Ovchinnikova (60 kg, J1), while the bronze medalists were Magomedzakir Magomedov (81 kg, J1) and Saadu Abdurakhmanov (81 kg, J2).

In the team competitions, the Russians took 1st place among women's teams and 3rd place among men's teams.

The Russian Paralympic Committee congratulates the athletes and coaches on their well-deserved awards and wishes them success in future competitions!

A total of 15 Russian judo athletes competed for medals: Saadu Abdurakhmanov (Republic of Dagestan), Shakhban Kurbanov (Republic of Dagestan), Ilyas Magomedov (Republic of Dagestan), Abdula Omarov (Republic of Dagestan), Artem Merkulov (Republic of Bashkortostan), Andrey Dyakov (Novosibirsk Region), Alexander Zhuzhgov (Perm Krai), Pavel Selivanov (Krasnoyarsk Krai), Viktor Rudenko (Khabarovsk Krai), Victoria Potapova (Moscow), Alesia Stepanyuk (Moscow), Daria Stakanova (Ulyanovsk Region), Magomedzakir Magomedov (Republic of Dagestan), Natalia Ovchinnikova (Perm Krai), and Aminat Omarova (Republic of Dagestan).

Based on materials from the All-Russian Federation of Blind Sports.

Blind judo was first included in the Paralympic Games program in 1988 in Seoul, and in 2004 in Athens, women competed in judo for the first time. The main difference in the rules is that judo athletes begin competing by gripping each other's judogi (this grip is called "kumikata"), and if the athletes' connection is broken, the referee stops the bout with the command "matte" (wait) or "stop," and the athletes return to their starting positions. During the bout, which lasts five minutes, participants are awarded points for throws, holds, sweeps, and choking techniques. The judo athlete with the highest total points is declared the winner. The main distinction from other elite judo competitions is the allowance of contact with the opponent before the bout begins for orientation purposes. At the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, Victoria Potapova, Alesia Stepanyuk, and Anatoly Shevchenko won bronze medals.