ASTANA – Yeldos Smetov has made history by winning Kazakhstan’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in judo. The Kazakh judoka triumphed in the men’s under-60 kilograms category at the 2024 Paris Olympics, defeating France’s Luka Mkheidze, a bronze medalist from the Tokyo 2020 Games.
In a statement, Smetov expressed gratitude to the people of Kazakhstan for their unwavering support, calling the victory a “historic moment” for the nation. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev congratulated Smetov on his achievement, highlighting the significance of the win. “Thanks to his skill and strength of spirit, the flag of Kazakhstan is flying high. Yeldos has emerged as the world’s best, overcoming formidable opponents and clinching victory in the major competitions of the past four years. The entire country admires you,” Tokayev wrote on his X account.
This gold medal marks Smetov’s third Olympic accolade. He previously earned a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics and a bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In related achievements, earlier today, Islam Satpayev and Alexandra Le secured bronze in the 10-meter mixed team air rifle event, marking Kazakhstan’s first Olympic medal in shooting since 1996.
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