High-Level Lessons for Evelyn Beaton and Yanis Hachemi

Montréal, February 7, 2026 – This weekend, the world’s top judokas are competing in the Paris Grand Slam, the first major international tournament of the year. Evelyn Beaton and Yanis Hachemi, the two Canadians in action on Saturday, were both halted in their first rounds.

Photo : Di Feliciantonio Emanuele

In the under-52 kg weight class, Beaton, of Alberta, bowed out to Sofia Asvesta of Cyprus following a gruelling battle that required extra time.

Asvesta showed strong determination from the very start. “She was more proactive, her attacks were more effective . . . she simply brought a little more,” explained Canadian coach Janusz Pawlowski in an interview with Sportcom.

In overtime, both athletes made numerous attacks. “Evelyn came close to scoring twice, but in the end, the judges decided not to award the points,” said Pawlowski.

After nearly five minutes of extra time, Asvesta ultimately prevailed by waza-ari.

Meanwhile, in the men’s under-73 kg weight category, Yanis Hachemi of Repentigny, QC, was defeated by South Korea’s Jaehong An, who took control of the match early and scored a yuko 45 seconds before the end of regulation time, then managed to maintain his lead until the clock ran out.

This was 23-year-old Hachemi’s first high-level tournament. “We’re talking about a Grand Slam, the Paris Grand Slam, which is the most competitive tournament in the world. A lot of the big-name athletes have already been eliminated,” noted Pawlowski.

According to the coach, both judokas will need to gain more experience if they hope to fare better in a tournament of this calibre. “For the time being, we’re going to focus on slightly lower-level competitions. They both need to gain confidence in their performances. Being here is great, but it’s also important that they experience a variety of lower-level competitions,” he explained.

On Sunday, Coralie Godbout (-78 kg) and John Jr. Messé A Bessong (+100 kg), both of Quebec, will hit the tatamis at the 52nd Paris Grand Slam.

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Written by Sportcom for Judo Canada

For more information:

Patrick Esparbès
Chief Operating Officer
Judo Canada
(514) 668-6279
p.esparbes@judocanada.org