The Ukrainian karate team has made history by finishing first in the medal standings at the European Championship for cadets, juniors, and youth (U21) held in Limassol, Cyprus. This was reported by the Ukrainian Karate Federation.
Ukrainian athletes claimed 13 medals: 4 gold, 7 silver, and 2 bronze. The competition, which took place from February 6 to 8, featured 1276 young athletes from 47 countries, including 36 Ukrainians.
European champions included: the youngest member of the Ukrainian team, 14-year-old Mark Dorosh, Sofia Eliy, Maxim Vechekanov - World Champion 2024 and European Champion 2025, as well as the decorated Daria Bulai.
Gold medals:
- Mark Dorosh (-52 kg, cadets)
- Sofia Eliy (-54 kg, cadets)
- Maxim Vechekanov (-55 kg, juniors)
- Daria Bulai (84+ kg, U21)
Silver medals:
- Hanna Maистренко (-47 kg, cadets)
- Diana Popova (-61 kg, cadets)
- Veronika Kotenko (-48 kg, juniors)
- Ulyana Baranova (-66 kg, juniors)
- Serhiy Stankov (-68 kg, juniors)
- Vladislav Rudenko (76+ kg, juniors)
- Oleksandr Kozilyan (84+ kg, U21)
Bronze medals:
- Maria Hness (-53 kg, juniors)
- Georgiy Pitsul (-75 kg, U21)
The Ukrainian team matched last year's record for the number of medals at the European Championship but surpassed previous achievements in terms of quality.
In the overall standings, the "blue-yellow" team outperformed the teams from Slovakia (4-0-4) and Italy (3-6-6).
Earlier, it was reported that Ukrainian European Champion Sofia Eliy refused to take a photo with the Russian athlete she defeated in the final.
