Montréal, May 16, 2026 – Judokas from Québec and Ontario stood head and shoulders above the proverbial crowd, winning the majority of national titles in the Under-21 and Under-16 divisions on Saturday, the penultimate day of the Canadian Open National Championships being held in Calgary, Alberta.

Photo: Judo Canada
Tristan Bourque and Emiliya Aliyeva

In the Under-21 category, Québec athletes earned themselves a wealth of gold medals, owing to performances from Roman Semyrozum (-60 kg), Vincent Roberge-Poitras (-66 kg), Fahd Fithane (-73 kg), Tristan Bourque (-81 kg), and Franck David Moussima Ewane (-100 kg).

Ontario’s Matthew Molchanov (-90 kg) and Alberta’s Arthur Stivenson (+100 kg) were the other gold medalists in this age category.

In one of Québec’s success stories Saturday, Bourque needed overtime to defeat Ontario’s Artem Neyolov. “In golden score, I sensed a kind of weakness in him, so I seized that opportunity, which enabled me to win the bout. In terms of technique and strategy, all my coaches have contributed to my success,” noted the judoka who will be back on the mat for Sunday’s senior competition.

Staying in the Under-21 category, but on the women’s side, Team Québec and Team Ontario were nearly neck-and-neck when it came to winning national titles.

Québec’s Laurence Gagnon (-57 kg), Charlie Thibault (-70 kg), and Frédérique Lavigne (+78 kg) all made it to the top step of the podium, while Ontario’s Marcela Seika Ciolfi (-48 kg) and Helena Oliveira (-52 kg) also earned gold.

British Columbia’s Carla Van Zyl (-63 kg) and Alberta’s Emiliya Aliyeva (-78 kg) will also leave Calgary with heavier luggage, thanks to their gold medals.

An enthusiastic Aliyeva commented, “I heard the crowd cheering me on, and that helped me perform even better. Now I want to compete at the Cadet and Junior World Championships, as well as other international tournaments.”

Canadian Under 16 Championships

In the Under 16 division, the list of women’s National Champions per weight classes is: Gabrielle Ursu (Québec, -40 kg), Cloé Gill (Québec, -44 kg), Marianne Schesnuik (Ontario, -48 kg), Laurianne Rodgers (Québec, -52 kg), Kaede Pentland (British Columbia, -57 kg), Ksenia Oudovikine (Ontario, -63 kg), Béatrice Asselin (Québec, -70 kg) and Ruby Bueckert (Manitoba, +70 kg).

Photo: Judo Canada
Kaede Pentland and Giorgi Kurashvili

For gold medallist Kaede Pentland, victory had special hometown and family connection. “When I pinned my opponent to the mat, it gave me confidence and I was happy,” noted the judoka who trains at the local Steveston club – where her parents are also senseis.

In the men’s Under 16 category, the National Champions in each weight class are: Mattia Gaiotti (Québec, -38 kg), Jeremy Woods (Alberta, -42 kg), Prokhor Reshetnikov (Ontario, -46 kg), Giorgi Kurashvili (Ontario, -50 kg), David Abramovich (Ontario, -55 kg), Raphael Cassista (Québec, -60 kg), Leo Ji (British Columbia, -66 kg), Ibrahim Azar (Québec, -73 kg) and Thomas Berns (Saskatchewan, +73 kg).

“I’m really proud, and I’ll do my best to prepare for the World Championships, which is my overall goal. The final was a long bout, but I wasn’t tired, actually I was energized,” said Kurashvili, who also won a gold medal on Friday in the Under-18 division.

The last day of the Canadian Open National Championships takes place Sunday, so make sure to go to the link below to watch Canada’s best and brightest senior-level judokas test their mettle.

Watch the live webcast at: www.judocanada.tv.

Need to catch up? Full results are available here.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada

For more information:

Patrick Esparbès
Chief Operating Officer
Judo Canada
(514) 668-6279
[email protected]