Fighters from the strongest Swiss judo clubs as well as squad athletes from surrounding countries took part in the exemplary organized international school and youth tournament. In the young U9 category, Keanu Hartmann, coached by Andreas Kamber and Sascha Walker, won the silver medal with two wins. Luca Zuberbühler and Samara Walker took third place with one fight each won.
Luca Zuberbühler (left) took bronze – his brother was visibly proud.
The brothers Liam and Diego Hartmann won in the U11. Both won all fights early by ippon. The brothers were extremely happy about the hard-fought double gold. With two wins and one loss, Jed Belazi secured the silver medal. Nils Müller and Fabian Sonderegger also received awards.
Fabio Nägeli managed a narrow victory in the U13. Although he lost in one encounter, he won twice with Ippon and thus achieved a rating point advantage over the runner-up.
Jérome Dietsche also achieved silver in the U13. After losing at the start, he showed a lot of fighting spirit when his second opponent took the lead at the start of the fight. Dietsche didn’t give up, left no stone unturned and built up more and more pressure. Finally he managed to score with his favorite throw, Seoi-Nage. He then pinned his opponent on the ground in a hold and achieved the decisive score with 20 seconds left. In the last duel he also managed to win with a combination of throw and subsequent hold, which earned him silver.
Jérome Dietsche managed to win with his favorite throw, Seoi-Nage.
Janick Federer succeeds in an Ippon throw in this action.
The successful Rheintaler U9 and U13 judokas with (back, from left) coach Sascha Walker, Nils Müller, Diego and Liam Hartmann, Jed Belazi and coach Andreas Kamber and in front (from left) Luca Zuberbühler, Keanu Hartmann, Samara Walker and Fabian Sonderegger.
Fabio Nägeli in action – he later won the U13 category.Image: pd
In the U15 up to 44 kg category, Helena Zäch confidently defeated two opponents with Ippon and won gold. Since it is her last year in the U15, she decided to start twice and competed in the U18 for the first time. Zäch showed that she can also hold her own in the next category. To the delight of coaches Andreas and Christian Kamber, she achieved two early victories through Ippon. She was extremely happy about her successful U18 debut and the two gold medals she won.
Janick Federer won the bronze medal in the U18 up to 66 kg. After a spectacular victory in the first fight, he had to admit defeat to Samuel Tischhauser from Buchs, even though he had initially taken the lead. In the fight for bronze, Federer once again won spectacularly with a shoulder throw that was rated as Ippon.
