While Italian cities lit up for the holidays, the judokas of the Novara Judo Center chose to end 2025 on the tatami. From 26 to 29 December, the Bardonecchia Sports Hall hosted the traditional “Christmas Judo Camp”, one of the most important events on the European scene, with the participation of Simon Vestali, Simone Di Giorgio, Gabriele Martinone and the brothers Mathieu and Aristid Sempio.
The appeal of the stage was international: over 1,100 athletes from all over Europe took advantage of the opportunity to compete with two world champions. The Japanese Soichi Hashimoto, a -73 kg legend, and the Swede Tommy Macias led the training, offering the young judokas valuable technical and tactical advice.
The level of the event was confirmed by the presence of clubs from Kosovo, Slovenia, Hungary, France, Greece, Switzerland and Montenegro, as well as prominent names such as Majlinda Kelmendi, Marie Eve Gahie, Manuel Lombardo and Fabio Basile.
The Novara coach Flavio Vestali underlines the importance of participation: «With this internship we close 2025. We decided to give the boys a few days of recovery and then start again with preparation in view of the next commitments».
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