France Triumphs at Euro Open Warsaw; Turkmenistan, Indonesia Make History

France was the leading nation on the opening day of the European Open in Warsaw. The French secured two gold medals and a total of eight medals. In the U60kg division, the audience witnessed an all-French final between Enzo Jean (FRA) and Maxime Merlin. Jean emerged victorious. Jean had lost the final in Warsaw last year against another Frenchman, Romain Valadier Picard. This time, he clinched his first World Cup gold medal and fourth medal exactly one year later. Sherzhod Davlatov (KAZ) claimed bronze, as he did last year.

The second gold for France came from another lightweight category, the women’s U48kg. Anais Perrot (FRA) secured the continental open gold medal, following her silver in Gyor a couple of weeks ago. Perrot’s final opponent was Junior European bronze medallist Giulia Ghiglione (ITA). Italy showcased strength despite the silver, with an all-Italian final in the women's U52kg between Kenya Perna and Martina Castagnola. Perna emerged victorious, capturing her first World Cup title.

A notable performance came from Turkmenistan, resulting in a gold medal in the women's U57kg category. 18-year old Maysa Pardayeva (TKM) claimed victory, converting her final into gold against Marta Garcia Martin (ESP). Martha Fawaz (FRA) and Shannon van de Meeberg (NED) joined Pardayeva on the podium with bronze medals. It was the sixth-ever World Cup victory for Turkmenistan in history. In 2022 Turkmenistan captured two gold medals at the European Open in Oberwart. Turkmenistan came close to another gold though, but Serdar Rahimov couldn’t prevent Mykyta Holoborodko (UKR) from winning gold in the 66kg final. Samuel Hall of Great Britain secured bronze, repeating last year's result in Warsaw.

Dutch athlete Nadiah Krachten secured her first European Open title after winning two bronzes in Rome and Prague in 2023. She defeated German Viktoria Folger in the U63kg final, emerging as the best among 63 women. In the -73kg category, Samuel Gassner (AUT) dominated and defeated his Italian opponent, Manuel Parlati, in the final. This highly competitive weight category featured 62 men. Gassner was the seventh Austrian ever to win the Polish Open since 1989. 

Indonesia achieved a milestone with a bronze medal in the women's U52kg category, won by Maryam March Maharani. It marked Indonesia's first European Open victory on European soil since the inception of World Cups in 1989. The average age of the winners was 21 years, really young, thanks to teenager Pardayeva.