Lasha Tsatsalashvili Makes it a Double

Montréal, May 18, 2025 – On Saturday, Lasha Tsatsalashvili (-81 kg) notched up an important victory over his Taifu Club teammate Artem Neyolov in the U21 final at the Canadian Open Championships in Calgary. On Sunday, the two men faced off again, this time in the senior category.

Photo Judo Canada
Lasha Tsatsalashvili and Laurence Biron

Tsatsalashvili once again came out ahead, securing his second title in as many days.

“I always work really hard, and it’s nice to see it pay off. I felt like I was in the zone all day. I definitely felt some extra pressure today, so I’m glad to have won again,” said the gold medallist.

The Ontarian won each of his first four bouts by ippon, including his semi-final bout against Yanis Hachemi.

Today’s medal was Tsatsalashvili’s first at the senior level.

“I made some good throws throughout the competition. I was able to win some of my matches very quickly, and I’m proud of that. It feels pretty great to have won a senior title in Canada. It’s a feeling I’ve never gotten to experience before,” he said.

Amir Temirbaev (-60 kg), Daniil Kremerman (-66 kg), Justin Lemire (-73 kg), Alec Garand (-90 kg), Yehor Paladii (-100 kg), and Ryan Proulx (+100 kg) also won the men’s titles in their respective weight classes.

On the women’s side, Laurence Biron clinched the gold medal in her first career Canadian Open Championships in the under-63 kg weight division.

Last year, the Québécoise claimed the title in the under-70 kg category.

“I’ve been competing in the under-63 kg category for about a year now, but this is my first competition in Canada in my new weight class, so I’m pretty proud to have won, and I feel confident that I can be a contender in the under-63 kg group. I didn’t know any of my opponents very well, which made it extra challenging, but I was well-prepared,” explained Biron.

After receiving a first-round bye, Biron defeated Alaa Snani, Margot Chevalier, and Catherine Toshkov in back-to-back bouts to advance to the final, where she faced Ontario’s Alyssa Tkachenko.

“As the day went on, I felt more and more confident. In the final, I didn’t know my opponent very well, so my aim was to be patient and assess her, and I was able to score an ippon fairly quickly,” said Biron.

“Today, I won all my bouts by attacking, and I’m very proud of that. I’m feeling confident about the future. The medal helps, of course. Also, I know what I need to work on in order to keep improving,” she concluded.

Heidi Quach (-48 kg), Melody Grenier (-52 kg), Laurence Gagnon (-57 kg), Charlie Thibault (-70 kg), and Marianna Karas (+78 kg) captured the gold medals in the other women’s weight categories.

For all the competition results, click here.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada

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Patrick Esparbès
Chief Operating Officer
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p.esparbes@judocanada.org