Amy Livesey takes Under 23 European Judo Championships gold

Amy Livesey became Britain’s third Under-23 European Champion on Saturday (14 November), defeating number one seed Daniela Kazanoi (BLR) on the way to claiming the gold medal.

Livesey (-63kg) became the first British woman and the third Brit to claim the Under-23 title after Craig Fallon in 2004 and Ashley McKenzie in 2010.

Starting the day with an ippon, defeating Magdalena Miller of Poland to progress to the quarter-finals. Two yuko scores on the board against Nadja Bazynski (GER) set up a semi-final match-up with number one seed, Daniela Kazanoi of Belarus. With a waza-ari and yuko on the board after four minutes, Livesey progressed to the finals to face Croatian Maja Blagojevic.

It was another strong performance from Livesey, taking the contest with a waza-ari and a yuko scored in the four minute contest.

Speaking to the EJU, Livesey said: “I felt good, I felt strong, but I tired towards the end, I managed to dig in and win gold. My hardest fights today were the quarter and semi-finals, both girls medalled here last year, and felt very strong.

“My next competitions this year will be the European Club Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia for a French team and the British Championships, both competitions are in December.

“Next year I will be hitting the Grand Prix’s in preparation for the Olympic Games in Tokyo.”

It was a good weekend for the Livesey family as Amy’s brother, Owen Livesey, was also in action in Australia claiming a silver medal. Bekky Livesey also claimed a bronze medal at the Junior European Championships in September to start a good period of results for the siblings.