Sara Alvarez on shaping cadet judo before Gran Canaria 2026

Sara Alvarez is once again stepping into a major role in European judo, this time for the 2026 Cadet European Championships in Gran Canaria. The Spanish leader, who has worked across elite competition, coaching and sport management, is helping guide the event from 29 June to 2 July as Sport Director of the Spanish Judo Federation.

Alvarez has seen judo from almost every angle. She has been an Olympic athlete, coached at cadet and senior level, served on the EJU Coaching Commission, and also taken on Sport Director roles in Spain and IBSA Judo. Now her focus is on delivering a championship on an island venue that brings its own challenges and energy.

Her job covers the practical side that many fans never see. That includes logistics, event operations, transporting equipment to Gran Canaria and working with local clubs to prepare volunteers and officials. Alvarez described the venue as huge, modern and well equipped, with big screens and two large warm-up areas.

Gran Canaria itself matters too. Alvarez highlighted the island’s special atmosphere and its blend of African and European influences, while also pointing to its strong judo tradition. According to her, many high-level competitors have come from the island, adding extra meaning to staging a Cadet European Championships there.

Gran Canaria 2026 is already taking shape behind the scenes.

Still, one of the most revealing parts of Alvarez’s interview was not about transport or venue plans. It was about cadet judo and why this age group has stayed so close to her heart.

After retiring from elite competition, Alvarez immediately began coaching Spain’s women’s cadets. She called that period the one she loved most. For her, cadets are open to learning, ready to absorb ideas, and at a stage where they may already have strong technical skills but are only beginning to understand how to fight.

That mix is what makes cadet development so important. Alvarez believes coaches must respect young athletes for who they already are instead of trying to remake them completely. In her view, the task is not to change them, but to improve them.

She also made a clear point about the style of judo young athletes should keep. What she loves most, she said, is the spirit of cadets who do not settle. Even when leading by Waza-ari, they still chase Ippon. That ambition, in her eyes, is something coaches should protect rather than limit.

Alvarez wants cadets to keep their hunger for Ippon.

Alvarez also suggested that cadet years can reveal future top-level potential. She described the category as a strong filter and recalled seeing that mentality early in athletes such as Anna Pérez Box, Francisco Garrigós, Laura Martínez and Nikoloz Sherazadishvili.

With Spain preparing to host the championship at home, pressure will naturally be part of the picture. But Alvarez’s message to the Spanish cadets is simple and calm: they have already shown their quality. They have trained hard, earned results and do not need to prove anything more to anyone.

That may be the strongest lesson in her approach. Build the event well, respect the athlete, and let young judoka keep the fire that made them special in the first place.

Source: EJU.net

Image source: EJU / European Judo Union