The second day of the European Open in Warsaw delivered a strong finish for the host nation, with Poland claiming three gold medals on Sunday and securing second place in the overall medal table behind a dominant French team. With 320 judoka from 27 nations competing across the weekend, the final day provided a fitting conclusion with seven weight categories decided.
One of the standout moments came in the women’s U52kg category, which featured 17 competitors. Aleksandra Kaleta delivered a breakthrough performance to secure gold in front of the home crowd. Entering as top seed and contesting her first Continental Open final after previously taking three bronze medals, Kaleta rose to the occasion against Italy’s Kenya Perna. She opened the scoring with a tani-otoshi for yuko before countering an uchi-mata attempt for waza-ari and adding another yuko in a dominant sequence. Poland added further success in the category with Barbara Twarowska taking bronze alongside Alicia Marques of France.
Poland’s second gold came in the men’s U81kg category, which attracted 31 competitors. Szymon Szulik produced a composed performance to defeat the Netherlands’ Joshua de Lange in the final. France placed two athletes on the podium through Luca Otmane and Bastien Pons, reflecting the depth of the category.
The third Polish gold of the day came in the men’s heavyweight division, where 15 competitors contested the +100kg category. Grzegorz Teresinski secured victory after defeating Jamal Feyziyev of Azerbaijan in the final. Poland added further depth through Jakub Sordyl, who claimed bronze alongside Germany’s Daniel Udsilauri.
In the women’s U48kg category, which featured 20 competitors, France dominated the final as Marine Gilly defeated compatriot Fina Pamedie Katendi Nzuzi. Aitana Diaz Hernandez of Spain and Anais Perrot of France completed the podium.
The women’s U57kg category, also with 20 athletes, produced gold for France through Ophelie Vellozzi, who overcame Poland’s Arleta Podolak in the final. Spain claimed both bronze medals through Malin Wilson Claret and Carla Ubasart Mascaro.
Montenegro celebrated success in the men’s U90kg category, which featured 28 competitors. Novo Raičević added another European Open title to his record by defeating France’s Aleksa Mitrovic in the final. Kazakhstan’s Aibol Nyssanali and Germany’s Johann Lenz secured bronze.
In the men’s U100kg division, contested by 23 judoka, the Netherlands secured a double podium finish as Joes Schell defeated teammate Lars Vissers in the final. Poland’s Michal Jedrzejewski claimed bronze alongside Azerbaijan’s Elmar Gasimov.
With three gold medals on Sunday, Poland provided the main highlights for the home supporters, while France’s consistency across both days secured them top position in the medal standings. The Netherlands also impressed with strong performances in the heavier men’s divisions.