Balarjishvili wins judo gold for Cyprus at Commonwealth Games

Cyprus won its first gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on Monday night, as judoka Georgios Balarjishvili beat Scotland’s Finlay Allan in the men’s 66kg category.

Balarjishvili, 19, came in third at the Junior European Cup in Athens this year and started his path to the gold medal in Birmingham by beating Northern Ireland’s Callum Nash in the round-of-16, followed by another two wins in the quarter and semi-finals against Australia’s Nathan Katz and Scotland’s Alexander Short.

The only previous medal in judo for Cyprus at the Commonwealth Games was a silver, won by Balarjishvili’s current coach, Christos Christodoulides, in 2002 in Manchester.

“During the final I had nothing else but gold on my mind,” Balarjishvili told the Cyprus News Agency on Tuesday, adding that the toughest opponent he had to face on his path to the final win was against Katz in the quarter-final.

“I am so incredibly happy. I still can’t believe I won the gold medal, especially considering how many athletes were vying for it here in Birmingham,” Balarjishvili added.
“I am also especially happy to have won gold under my coach (Christos Christodoulides), who won silver at the Commonwealth Games in 2022.”

Balarjishvili added that prior to final against Allan, he never thought he could make it to the very end of the judo tournament.
“Thinking about it today, one day after the final, I realise everything much more. As soon as doubts started creeping in during the match against Allan, I told myself: ‘Stay focused, the only thing that matters is the gold medal!’”

The judoka finally thanked his coaches and the staff members of the Cypriot delegation who travelled with him to Birmingham.
“I could not have done it without them. Now my focus will turn to the upcoming Olympic Games, where will be fighting to achieve another gold medal for Cyprus,” he said.

Balarjishvili’s gold is the fourth medal for Cyprus at this year’s Commonwealth Games. Gymnast Sokratis Pilakouris secured silver in the men’s rings event, while the men’s gymnastics team, which, aside from Pilakouris, also includes athletes Marios Georgiou, Ilias Georgiou, Georgios Angonas and Michalis Chari, won the bronze medal in the men’s all-around event.

The other hope for Cyprus in the sport, 17-year-old Petros Christodoulides, secured fourth place in the 60kg category, losing out in the bronze medal match to India’s Vijay Kumar Yadav by ippon.

Christodoulides, who is also battling a shoulder injury in Birmingham, beat Sierra Leone’s Kenny Williams, Cameroon’s Bernadin Tsala and Zambia’s Simon Zulu Zam, before losing to England’s Samuel Hall.

Cyprus has competed in ten previous editions of the Commonwealth Games, making their first appearance in 1978, and missing only one Games since, in 1986. The island has won 57 Commonwealth medals so far, 24 gold, 14 silver and 19 bronze.