Brazil wins silver and bronze on the 3rd day of the Judo World Championships in Hungary

Brazil reached the podium twice this Sunday (15), the third day of the World Judo Championships in Budapest (Hungary), the first major competition of the Olympic cycle of the Los Angeles Games (2028). Two-time Olympic medalist, Daniel Cargnin from Rio Grande do Sul was runner-up in the 73 kg category, and Shirlen Nascimento from Paraná, a debutant in the competition, took the bronze medal in the 57 kg category. The competition, which runs until next Friday (20), brings together a total of 556 judokas from 93 countries, including 18 Brazilian athletes, including experienced judokas in international tournaments such as Beatriz Souza (78 kg), Rafaela Silva (63 kg), Rafael Macedo (90 kg) and Leonardo Gonçalves (100 kg).

The silver medal won this Sunday (15) by Cargnin had a special meaning: he broke an eight-year drought without Brazilian finalists in the men's World Championship. In addition, the 27-year-old judoka from Rio Grande do Sul, who won two Olympic bronze medals – in the team event in Paris 2024 and in the individual 66-kilogram (kg) event in Tokyo 2020 – recently returned to competition, after eight months away from the mats, right after the Paris Games. During that period, he treated ankle and shoulder injuries. He returned to competition in April, at the Pan American and Oceania Championships in Santiago (Chile), winning silver in the individual event and gold in the team event.

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IT'S SILVER!

Daniel Cargnin (73kg) has a spectacular campaign in Budapest, winning five fights, and is JUDO WORLD VICE-CHAMPION!

I'M SO PROUD, DANI!!!!! You SO deserve to be on this podium!

Congratulations, CBJ and Sogipa team! pic.twitter.com/TfJngMP66F

— CBJ (@JudoCBJ) June 15, 2025

Today (15), Cargnin took silver after being defeated by Frenchman Joan-Benjamin Gaba, current Olympic runner-up. His opponent landed a waza-ari that put the Brazilian in the golden score (extra time).

“We often say that the World Championship is sometimes even more difficult than the Olympics, because some categories can be doubled. I think that, in relation to Los Angeles, now is the time to keep my feet on the ground. Last year, when I won a medal at the World Championship, I thought about winning a medal at the Olympics too. I was only thinking about the future and not enjoying the present, you know? So I think now is the time to enjoy this silver medal. I just lost the competition there, the final, but I am very happy with the attitude I had on the mat. I think I have to stay resilient, because defeats cannot be the end of the world and victory cannot be a reason to stop training. Now is the time to put my head in the right place to try to help the team as much as possible in the team competition,” said Cargnin, in a statement to the Brazilian Judo Confederation (CBJ).

Although she is a debutant at the World Championships, Shirlen Nascimento, 25, has been standing out on the international scene since the end of 2024, when she won bronze at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam (United Arab Emirates). The podium in Abu Dhabi served as a springboard for Shirlen to qualify for the National Selection, which gave her a spot at the Pan American Games in Santiago, in April. The athlete from Paraná shone again, this time reaching the top of the podium. From then on, Shirlen competed at the Astana Grand Slam (Kazakhstan), where she won another bronze, the last before being called up for the Budapest World Championships.

WORLD MEDALIST!

Shirlen Nascimento made her debut at the Judo World Championship in an unforgettable way: climbing to the podium and putting her name on a select list of Brazilian judo!

What a campaign, what pride! #TimeBrasil #Judo pic.twitter.com/UmZOSucpUS

— Time Brasil (@timebrasil) June 15, 2025

In the final fight for the bronze medal at the World Cup, the Brazilian won the golden score , finishing the fight against Maysa Pardayeva (Turkmenistan) with a waza-ari.

“I got a tough fight right at the beginning. But everyone gave me tips on what to do, so it seemed a little easy. But I think I’ve always been trying really hard, and eventually the results will come. I think I’m in a really good moment, I’ve been improving every day. I’m also getting a lot of help, people have been helping me a lot,” revealed the judoka from Paraná.

Nauana Silva (63 kg)

Rafaela Silva (63 kg)

Gabriel Falcon (81 kg)

Luan Almeida (81 kg)

* Preliminary fights starting at 6am and finals at 1pm (Brasília time)