Van der Hulst brothers win razor-thin kata tie-break in Sarajevo

The World Judo Championships Kata Sarajevo 2026 began with high-level performances across five categories, including a dramatic senior Nage-no-kata decision involving the Netherlands’ Maik and Kevin Van der Hulst. With 220 pairs from 34 countries entered overall, the opening day put kata’s international reach firmly on display.

The Dutch brothers and Germany’s Immo and Hendrik Schmidt finished level on the final score in senior Nage-no-kata. Maik and Kevin Van der Hulst were awarded the title after recording fewer errors, while France’s Louis and Paul Ghegediban took bronze with 395 points.

The senior Nage-no-kata title was decided only by the number of recorded errors.

European pairs also featured strongly in several other categories. Nicolas and Jean Philippe Gilon of Belgium earned silver in senior Katame-no-kata with 398 points, behind Japan’s Ryuji Kabata and Toshiji Odate, who won with 405.5. Korea’s Seungho Choi and Taehyeon Kim completed the podium on 397.5.

In senior Ju-no-kata, Italy’s Giovanni and Angelica Tarabelli secured silver with 390 points. Romania’s Alina Zaharia and Alina Cheru followed in third place with 388, while Japan’s Momoko and Mariko Ishida won gold on 400 points.

Germany added another medal in senior Koshiki-no-kata as Ursula Loosen and Wolfgang Dax Romswinkel finished second with 521.5 points. Peter Goossens and Jelle Van Roosendaal of the Netherlands claimed bronze, while Japan’s Katsuhiko Tetsuka and Kensuke Tokita delivered the day’s highest score, 559.5.

The junior Nage-no-kata contest was equally close. Korea’s An Sungchul and Yoon Geonwoo took gold with 362 points, narrowly ahead of Lee Minhoo and Jung Hyeonjun on 360.5. Spain’s Diego Hurtado Martin and Javier Miguelez de Salas completed the podium with 360 points.

Japan ended the day leading the medal table with three gold medals. Korea collected one gold, one silver and one bronze, while the Netherlands left the tatami with one gold and one bronze. Germany, Italy, Belgium, France, Spain and Romania were also among the nine countries to reach the podium.

Italy brought the largest delegation to Sarajevo, with 34 pairs, followed by Canada and France on 16 pairs each. From Nage-no-kata and Katame-no-kata to Ju-no-kata and Koshiki-no-kata, the opening programme showed the range of a discipline built on detail, control and shared precision.

Source: IJF.org

Image source: IJF / International Judo Federation