French Judo Blogs

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Montréal, December 7, 2025 – Canadian judokas  François Gauthier-Drapeau  and  Coralie Godbout  finished seventh in their respective categories on Sunday at the Grand Slam in Tokyo, Japan. Both will depart the event having learned some valuable lessons. Photo IJF (c) Emanuele Di Feliciantonio In the under-81 kg weight category, Gauthier-Drapeau concluded the competition with two wins and two losses. The 27-year-old Canadian, who captured gold at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam last week,... Read more

Montréal, December 6, 2025 –  Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard  would have preferred a stronger result on Saturday in her first competition in nearly six months. However, at the iconic Tokyo Grand Slam in Japan, the Canadian was limited to a single test after receiving a bye in the first round. Photo Tom Taylor – Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard in white In the under-63 kg category, Beauchemin-Pinard was ousted by Israel’s Gili Sharir, the gold medallist at the Zagreb Grand Prix in November,... Read more

Montréal, November 29, 2025 – Canada’s François Gauthier-Drapeau scooped up the second Grand Slam gold medal of his career on Saturday in the United Arab Emirates, ending an outstanding day in the under-81 kg category atop the podium in Abu Dhabi. Photo: IJF François Gauthier-Drapeau After opening the scoring in the first minute of the final against Russia’s Abdul-Kerim Tasuev, he added a waza-ari to the board with just over two minutes to go, on his way to a decisive victory. Howe... Read more

Montréal, November 16, 2025 – Heidi Quach (-48 kg) and François Gauthier Drapeau (-90 kg) secured the top spot on the podium in their respective categories on Sunday at the Pan-American Cup in Montréal. Photo Patrick Esparbès Heidi Quach and François Gauthier Drapeau In total, the Canadian team captured twelve medals on the closing day of the event. Quach clinched the under-48 kg gold medal thanks to three flawless performances in as many bouts at the Centre Pierre-Charbonneau. ... Read more

Montréal, November 16, 2025 – A year ago, Luke Thomson was forced to forgo the Quebec Open and Canada Cup judo tournaments in Montréal because of a tendon injury. However, the young judoka had no intention of sitting idle. In fact, he turned the situation into an opportunity to combine his two passions: filmmaking and judo. Photo Luke Thomson: CR :  @ashleymerlov Thomson had always wanted to make a documentary film about judo, and the timing was perfect, as the biggest names in Can... Read more

Montréal, November 15, 2025 – British Colombia’s Carla Van Zyl made a lasting impression at the Panamerican Cup in Montreal on Saturday. The junior-aged athlete prevailed in the senior under-63 kg category, an even more remarkable achievement considering she usually competes in the under-57 kg weight class. Photo : Carla Van Zyl & Félix Mercier-Ross Her gold medal was one of four won by the Canadian team, with Julien Frascadore (-66 kg), Félix Mercier-Ross (-73 kg) and Coralie Godbo... Read more

Montréal, November 14, 2025 – After winning silver in the junior category the day before, Nicole Daria Manaila had one goal in mind on Friday before entering the Montreal Panamerican Open cadet competition: reach the top step of the podium in the under-57 kg weight class. Photo Judo Canada Gabriela Makhatadze and Nicole Daria Manaila It was mission accomplished for the Quebec native, who’s flawless performance in three bouts at the Pierre-Charbonneau Center led her to capture her se... Read more

Montréal, November 13, 2025 – Canada’s judokas were a force to be reckoned with on day one of the Pan-American Cup, held at Montréal’s Centre Pierre-Charbonneau. The country’s junior athletes captured a total of 9 gold medals. Photo Judo Canada Hayden Thibeault and Vincent Nepton In the boys’ competition, Vincent Nepton performed flawlessly in his five bouts in the under-60 kg category, earning the top spot on the podium. In the big final, the Québécois faced Great Britain’s Jo... Read more

Montréal, November 10, 2025 – Montréal will become the continental capital of judo from November 13 to 16, when it hosts three Pan-American Open tournaments at the Centre Pierre-Charbonneau. In addition to the senior competitions, which will take place on Saturday, November 15, and Sunday, November 16, the junior and cadet competitions will be held on Thursday and Friday, November 13 and 14. A total of 220 athletes from 19 countries and six continents will take part in the senior tourn... Read more