Three Medals for GB Judo at the Rome European Open

British Judo celebrated a successful weekend at the Rome European Open, claiming three medals. Shelley Ludford earned a silver medal as she continued her comeback from long-term injury, while both Max Gregory and Wesley Greenidge secured bronze. Each fighter showcased skill and resilience on the mat during their journey to the podium.

Shelley Ludford started her campaign in Pool B of the -78kg category, where she faced Italy’s Irene Caleo. Ludford exhibited great composure as she controlled the match, scoring a decisive waza-ari to advance to the semi-finals.

In the semi-finals, she met Spain’s Nisrin Bousbaa Dab and delivered another composed performance, scoring waza-ari-awasete-ippon after just over a minute to secure her place in the final.

In the final match against Germany’s Julie Hoelterhoff, Ludford looked strong in the early exchanges; however, Hoelterhoff eventually threw for ippon, leaving Ludford with a well-deserved silver medal to add to her Bronze medal from the Sarajevo European Open at the end of October.

Max Gregory also made a strong impression in the -90kg category. He began in the round of 16 against Italy’s Michele Valeri. The match was tense, but Gregory capitalised in the final seconds, scoring waza-ari-awasete-ippon and advancing to the quarter-finals.

In his next bout against Germany’s Tim Schmidt, Gregory was defeated by ippon, which sent him to the repechage. There, he delivered an assertive performance, throwing Italy’s Francesco Sanapo within a minute.

This victory set up a bronze medal match against Luca Galbiati, where Gregory clinched his medal by registering ippon in another quick match.

In the -100kg category, Wesley Greenidge entered Pool D with a first-round bye, which advanced him directly to the Quarter Finals.

He faced Greece’s Panagiotis Papanikolaoi in this bout, where both fighters struggled for dominance. Papanikolaoi accumulated three shidos, resulting in Hansoku-Make, sending Greenidge into the Semi Finals against Italy’s Gennaro Pirelli.

In a cagey and challenging match, Greenidge received hansoku-make after receiving three shidos of his own, which dropped him into the bronze medal contest. Rising to the occasion, Greenidge initially had an early ippon cancelled following review, but he managed to regain his composure despite that setback as he went on the attack and earned a “second” ippon shortly after, securing his bronze medal.

Seven other British judokas, Michael Fryer, Oliver Short, Alexander Short, Jamal Petgrave, Leah Hasler, Lanina Solley, and Josie Steele, competed in Rome, demonstrating skill and promise despite not reaching the podium on this occasion.

Solley and Steele both reached the bronze medal playoffs in their respective categories but were unable to secure a medal. However, both claimed an incredibly respectable 5th place in a highly competitive European event.

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