Valuable Experience Gained at the 2025 World Judo Championships
June 18, 2025
Our 2025 World Judo Championships campaign in Budapest has come to a close, with a young and developing squad gaining valuable experience on the world stage.
While it wasn’t a medal-filled outing, there were plenty of encouraging signs and key lessons learned throughout the week.
Tatum Keen (Bradley Stoke JC) impressed on her World Championships debut, securing a confident first-round win before narrowly losing to the reigning European champion, who later went on to claim her second world bronze. A strong performance from the 20-year-old, showing she has a bright future ahead at this level.
Acelya Toprak (Camberley JC), returning to GB colours and competing on the IJF World Tour for the first time in eight months, also opened with a solid victory before exiting in the second round. A positive return to top-level competition, and great to see her back on the international stage.
Kelly Petersen-Pollard (Hardy Spicer 83) started strongly with a dominant opening win, before bowing out in the next round via hansoku-make after three shidos. Fine margins decided her exit, but there’s no doubt she’ll be back stronger.
Finally, Emma Reid (Redbridge JC) picked up a first-round win before falling in the second, while Rhys Thompson (Enfield JC) and Ollie Barratt (Dragons Academy) both exited in their opening matches of the -100kg category—Rhys struggling with an early injury and Ollie facing a high-level opponent in his first senior Worlds appearance.
This week was an important step forward for a team still early in a new Olympic cycle, and this experience will aid their growth and development going forward.
