Georgia’s national judo team has won its first medal at the World Judo Championships currently taking place in Baku.

Giorgi Sardalashvili claimed the bronze medal in the -60kg weight category.

The Georgian judoka began his campaign with a victory over Israel’s Yitzhak Shpiz, the tournament’s second seed. Sardalashvili secured a convincing win to advance to the next round.

In the round of 16, Sardalashvili defeated Portugal’s Brian Trajano Fernandes to book his place in the quarterfinals.

His quarterfinal opponent was Japan’s Ryuju Nagayama, the reigning world champion. In a closely contested bout, the Japanese judoka secured the victory, sending Sardalashvili into the repechage.

In the bronze medal contest, the Georgian defeated France’s Romain Valadier-Picard to earn a place in the fight for third place.

Sardalashvili’s opponent in the bronze medal contest was Chinese Taipei’s Yung Wei Yang. Giorgi maintained an attacking approach throughout the bout and eventually defeated his opponent with a hold-down, earning the bronze medal at the World Championships.

This is Sardalashvili’s third World Championship medal. He won bronze at the 2023 World Championships in Doha and became world champion in 2024.