National Olympic Committee reacts to Diyora Keldiyorova's victory in Aktau

The National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Uzbekistan has officially reacted to the successful performance and gold medal of the country's historic Olympic champion Diyora Keldiyorova at the international tournament Aktau Asian Open 2026 held in Kazakhstan.

In its official statement, the Committee specially acknowledged the victory of the champion, who returned to the tatami after maternity leave and a long break: «Our champion has returned: Diyora Keldiyorova wins gold medal in Aktau».

Early victory in the final

Competing in the -52 kg weight category, the Uzbek judoka fully demonstrated her skills throughout the competition:

• Control over opponents: Keldiyorova confidently defeated her initial opponents in the tournament bracket and advanced to the decisive final stage;

• Bout against the Azerbaijani opponent: In the final match, our compatriot faced a representative of Azerbaijan, defeated her rival ahead of schedule with an ippon (clean win), and took the highest step of the podium;

• Grand return: This victory showed that, despite a long-term break, the athlete has fully preserved her high athletic form and champion spirit.

Paris 2024 Olympics: The legendary path that made history

The NOC recalled that Diyora Keldiyorova's last official competition before this was the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games:

• Victory over Abe and Krasniqi: On the path to the Olympics in Paris, Diyora first stunned the entire sports world by defeating the absolute favorite and four-time world champion Uta Abe of Japan, and in the final, she subdued Tokyo 2020 Olympics winner Distria Krasniqi of Kosovo;

• First result in the history of Uzbekistan: Thanks to this triumph, she went down in history as the first female athlete from Uzbekistan to win a gold medal in judo at the Summer Olympic Games;

• Maternity and a new stage: Having temporarily stepped away from sports after the Paris success due to the birth of a child, Keldiyorova returned with a confident step to the struggles of the new Olympic cycle through this gold medal in Aktau.

Diyora Keldiyorova's triumphant return serves not only our national judo school but also to further strengthen the position of Uzbek sports in new international arenas.