Samariddin Kuchkarov won bronze at the Grand Slam in Lausanne

Samariddin Kuchkarov won a bronze medal at the Grand Slam tournament in Lausanne. This was the first award for the Uzbek team at the Grand Slam competition held in Switzerland.

Kuchkarov placed third in the 60 kg weight class at the Ecole Mont-Olivet Lausanne Grand Slam tournament. In the final of this category, 20-year-old Japanese judoka Yamato Fukuda defeated Harim Lee of the Republic of Korea ahead of schedule, taking the victory. Brazilian Michel Augusto won the second bronze medal in this weight class.

In the bronze medal bout, Samariddin Kuchkarov faced Sherzod Davlatov of Kazakhstan. It took the Uzbek athlete almost two minutes to perform the decisive sumotoshi throw, which earned him a yuko and, consequently, the bronze medal.

The Lausanne tournament is a historic event, as it marks the first time in the history of the World Judo Tour that a Grand Slam competition is being held in Switzerland. Five medal events were contested on the first day of the tournament. In addition to the 60 kg category, winners were determined in the women's 48, 52, and 57 kg weight classes, as well as the men's 66 kg category.

The first day of competition also marked a historic milestone for adaptive judo: alongside the main tournament, the Ecole Mont-Olivet Lausanne Adapted Judo Grand Slam was held at the Vaudoise Arena. Athletes with intellectual disabilities, autism, limb impairments, and cerebral palsy competed in the first two classification categories.

Dignitary guests attended the tournament, including Marius Vizer, President of the International Judo Federation, and Thomas Bach, Honorary Life President of the International Olympic Committee.

For Uzbekistan, the highlight of the first day was Samariddin Kuchkarov's bronze medal, which opened the national team's medal tally at the first-ever Swiss Grand Slam.