Tirana takes the baton
There were tears of joy, tears of sadness, and time to say goodbye. The European Universities Combat Sports Championships in combat sports concluded in Warsaw on Monday, August 25th. The closing ceremony took place at the Ursynów Arena.
Three days of competition, four sports venues, four disciplines: judo, kickboxing, taekwondo, and karate, plus months of preparation. The European Universities Combat Sports Championship has come to an end in Warsaw. Over 1400 student athletes from 32 countries took part in the event. According to the participants, the competition was a success and they will leave Warsaw with many fond memories.
However, before heading home, everyone gathered once again at Arena Ursynów to enjoy the great celebration of combat sports. The event began with a parade of volunteers carrying the flags of the countries participating in the competition. The volunteers were an important part of the event. They came from different countries and had the opportunity to learn about a new culture and meet new people. This will pay off in the future.
The ceremony was attended by Adam Roczek, president of EUSA, and Rafał Jachimiak, vice-president of the University Sports Association in Warsaw. Ireneusz Raś, Secretary at the Ministry of Sport and Tourism, was also a guest and emphasised the value of fair play. However, the main protagonists were the athletes, but there were also words of thanks for the sports federations that organised the competitions, as well as for the partners and sponsors.
Adam Roczek congratulated all participants and volunteers and recalled Nelsona Mandelia's words about the power of sport to inspire. He also congratulated the organisers. After a while, Rafal Jachimiak said that it was a wonderful meeting. Although they were not experts in combat sports before, they fell in love with these sports during a year of preparation.
It couldn't take away the academic anthem Gaudeamus Igitur. Another item on the agenda was the handover of the EUSA flag to the mr. Ervin Pepi - project director of the Albanian University Sports Association. Tirana will host the championship in 2027. He thanked the Warsaw organizers for their advice, and said, "Do widzenia" - that is, goodbye in Polish.
The competition was a wonderful display of fair play and an opportunity to meet people from all over Europe. As one of the competitors said, discipline and character are useful in everyday life, including when studying. It was an opportunity to showcase various talents. This was demonstrated by one of the organizers, Mateusz Mlynczak, who played the bass guitar during the closing ceremony.
Medal standings:
Gazi University (TUR) (5 gold - 2 silver - 0 bronze )
Anadolu University (TUR) (4-3-1)
Istanbul Aydin University (TUR) (4+0+2)
Ondokuz Mayis University (TUR) (4+0+2)
Jozef Pilsudski Academy of Physical Education in Warsaw (POL) (3-4-1)
Istanbul Kent University (TUR) (3-3-6)
Georgian Uni (GEO) (3-3-3)
University Politechnica of Bucharest (HUN) (3-2-1)
University of Ostrava (CZE) (3+1-0)
University of Zagreb (CRO) - (2-3-4)
Medal standings:
Turkey: 26 gold - 14 silver - 27 bronze
Poland: 6 - 16- 21
France: 6 - 6 - 17
Romania: 5 - 4 - 6
Czechia: 5 - 2 - 2
Hungary: 5 - 1 - 13
Austria: 4 - 2 - 2
Germany: 4 - 0 - 11
Portugal: 2 - 6 - 13
Georgia: 3 - 3 - 3
Txt: Robert Zakrzewski
Foto: Marcin Klimczak
The event is organized by EUSA, University Sports Association of Poland, University Sports Association of Warsaw, the Polish Taekwondo Federation, the Polish Judo Association, the Polish Kickboxing Association, and the Polish University Karate Federation.
Main Partner of the event is The City of Warsaw.
Event Partners are: The Ministry of Sport and Tourism, the Regional Government of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship and the Służewiec Horse Racecourse.
Technical Partners are: Toyota W&J Wiśniewski, Grupa Ornecka/Reklawiz and SportData
The European Universities Combat Championships are held under the honorary patronage of the Marshal of the Mazowieckie Voivodeship and the Mayor of the City of Warsaw.
The Championships take place at facilities of OSiR Włochy, the Faculty of Management at the University of Warsaw, the ARCHE Hotels network and Arena Ursynow.