Greek athletes enjoyed a remarkable run of international success across taekwondo, judo and wrestling competitions this week, collecting gold medals, podium finishes and memorable celebrations on the world stage.
Leading the charge was Greek taekwondo champion Stella Marentaki, who was crowned European champion at the 50th anniversary European Men’s and Women’s Taekwondo Championships after a dominant undefeated campaign in the women’s -67kg division.
Marentaki delivered a sensational performance throughout the tournament, overcoming Turkey’s Izil Zafer, Croatia’s Pole and Serbia’s Perisic, all by 2-0 margins, to book her place in the final against Hungary’s Marton.
The Greek champion saved her best performance for the gold medal match, storming to a commanding 16-6 victory in the opening round before completely overpowering her opponent 29-5 in the second to secure the European title and spark celebrations within the Greek camp.
Two other Greek taekwondo athletes also impressed at the championships, with Apostolis Panagopoulos and Melina Georgiou narrowly missing out on medals after both reached the quarter-finals.
Greece also celebrated major success in judo at the first Balkan Championship of 2026 in Montenegro, where the national youth and junior team claimed two gold medals, four bronze medals and gold in the mixed team event.
The Greek side produced an outstanding display in the mixed team competition, defeating Romania 4-3 in the opening round, Moldova 4-2 in the semi-finals and Turkey 4-0 in the final in a commanding performance.
Victories throughout the competition came from athletes including Rotsos, Papadopoulou, Kottidis, Papatheodorou, Ouranitsa, Youmoukian and Golias.
Greek supporters in the stands created an emotional atmosphere during the medal ceremony, proudly singing the national anthem as the Greek flag was raised.
The celebrations continued after the event, with members of the Greek team dancing syrtaki on the tatami and drawing athletes from other countries into the festivities in one of the most memorable moments of the championship.
In the individual judo events, Maria Eleni Papaioannou (-70kg) and Iliana Korai Stavropoulou (-52kg) won gold medals for Greece, while Liova Youmoukian (-90kg), Efthimios Golias (-81kg), Danae Dimou (-57kg) and Alexandra Pavlidis (-44kg) each secured bronze medals.
The team was led by coach Alexis Danatsidis.
Meanwhile, Greece also celebrated success in beach wrestling at the opening World Series event in Vietnam, where Stefania Zaheila captured gold in the +70kg category.
Zaheila dominated the tournament without conceding a single point, defeating Vietnam’s Hoang 4-0, Nguyen 1-0 and To 3-0 on her way to the top of the podium.
In the men’s 90kg category, Michalis Akritidis narrowly missed out on a medal after losing 3-0 to Ukraine’s Yakovtsun in the bronze medal match, ultimately finishing fourth after an impressive tournament performance.
Elias Karnavas also competed strongly in the 70kg division, finishing in 10th place despite several narrow defeats.
The latest results continue a strong period for Greek combat sports internationally, with athletes across multiple disciplines producing standout performances and flying the Greek flag proudly on the global stage.
