Reid Strikes Gold as GB Judokas Deliver in Dushanbe and Istanbul

Ten British judokas were in international action over the weekend, with six competing at the Dushanbe Grand Slam in Tajikistan and four taking to the mat at the Istanbul Junior European Cup in Turkey.

Emma Reid (Redbridge) stole the show for Great Britain once again, continuing her outstanding run of form by claiming gold in the -78kg category at the Dushanbe Grand Slam. The experienced judoka was in commanding form throughout, showcasing her class as she cruised to the top of the podium with ease, winning every contest by Ippon to take her second Grand Slam Gold medal.

Since making her Olympic debut last year, Reid has gone from strength to strength, and it’s exciting to see what she’ll achieve next.

In the -70kg category, Kelly Petersen-Pollard (Hardy Spicer 83) continued her strong start to the year by taking silver in Tajikistan. She progressed confidently through the earlier rounds, securing her place in the final without major challenge. There, she came up against a high-level opponent and, despite a determined effort, was unable to find the winning score.

This result adds to an already impressive 2025 campaign and reinforces her position as a top contender in her weight class.

Oliver Barratt (Dragons Academy) secured a 5th-place finish in the -100kg category, his third top-seven result of the year. Barratt looked sharp from the outset, powering through his opening matches to reach the semi-final. There, he was narrowly defeated, sending him into the bronze medal contest.

Facing a Tajikistani opponent backed by a vocal home crowd, Barratt put in a determined performance but ultimately just missed out on a place on the podium.

Tatum Keen (Bradley Stoke) finished 7th in the -52kg category, showing encouraging signs in a fiercely competitive field. She began the day with a confident win to book her place in the quarter-finals, but two tough losses in succession ended her run in the repechage.

Moving on to Turkey for the Istanbul Junior European Cup, the standout performance came from Nicole Wood (Bishops Stortford), who continued her strong international form with a bronze medal in the -78kg category, her second medal of 2025.

Maddy Birri (Ealing JC) finished 7th in the -57kg category, matching her result from the Poznań Junior European Cup last month. She secured two strong wins in the round of 32 and round of 16, but a tough set of matchups in the quarter-final and repechage left her just outside the podium places.

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