Montréal, August 28, 2025 – Anes Mati obtained Canada’s best result of the day at the Cadet World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, on Wednesday, finishing fifth in the under-66 kg weight division. And although the Québécois did not secure a coveted spot on the podium, he did gain a wealth of experience over the course of the day.
“He learned that when you believe in yourself, anything is possible. He also realized he’s got what it takes to compete at this level, and that he can do well in an international competition,” said his coach, Ewan Beaton.
In the late-afternoon bronze medal final, Mati faced Kazakhstan’s Rolan Kairgali, who scored early in the match and held on to his lead to secure the medal.
“[Anes] didn’t put enough pressure on his opponent. He couldn’t quite find his stride, so he didn’t fight as aggressively as he could have,” explained the coach.
Earlier in the competition, Mati defeated Roko Rozga of Croatia, Saleh Al-Saadi of Qatar, and Muhamadyosin Sulaimonov of Tajikistan. In the quarter-finals, he bowed out to Mukhammedali Zhylkaidar of Kazakhstan, but bounced back in the repechage with a win over Numan Onay of Turkey.
“He had a great day and was a wonderful surprise for the Canadian team!” said Beaton.
In the same weight category, Connor Gallant lost his first and only match to Preslav Nikolov of Bulgaria.
“He put up a good fight against a very solid opponent. I think he had a decent chance of winning, but unfortunately, he was pinned to the ground by ne-waza at the end of the bout,” explained Beaton.
In the under-60 kg division, Amir Temirbaev defeated Roman Kuznetsov of Belarus in his first match. However, in the next round, he lost by yuko to Mukhammadkarim Nosirov of Uzbekistan.
“[Amir] fought very well today. He won his first match in overtime by pinning his opponent to the ground. In the next round, he performed better than his opponent in the second half of the bout, but unfortunately, by then he was already too far behind in both points and penalties,” said his coach.
On the girls’ side, Melody Grenier (-52kg) obtained a first-round bye, but was disqualified in her bout against Salome Merkviladze of Georgia.
“She was very much up to the task, and she dominated the match from start to finish. Throughout the entire bout, she kept it on the ground and remained in control of her opponent, but at one point, when she attacked, she unfortunately connected with her opponent’s elbow and was disqualified,” explained Beaton.
In the same weight category as Grenier, Maegan Grooten lost her first and only bout to Hannah Glauner of Germany.
Lowan Le Bris (-73 kg), Tristan Bourque (-81kg), Myroslava Bondarenko (-57 kg), Maia Thomson (-63 kg), and Victoria Summers (-63 kg) will represent Canada on the tatamis on Friday.
-30-
For more information:
Patrick Esparbès
Chief Operating Officer
Judo Canada
(514) 668-6279
p.esparbes@judocanada.org