Croatia has three finalists at the European Karate Championships in Frankfurt
The Croatian karate national team achieved one of the most notable results of the current part of the European Senior Karate and Para-Karate Championships, which are being held in Frankfurt from 20 to 24 May 2026. In the individual part of the competition, three Croatian female karatekas secured final bouts, while three Croatian male karatekas will compete on Saturday in matches for bronze medals. According to announcements by the Croatian Karate Federation and available reports from the championships, Ema Sgardelli reached the final in the category up to 50 kilograms, Mia Greta Zorko in the category up to 61 kilograms and Sadea Bećirović in the category up to 68 kilograms. Ivan Terihaj will fight for bronze in the category up to 75 kilograms, while Ivan Kvesić and Anđelo Kvesić will fight in the categories up to 84 and over 84 kilograms, respectively.
Such a performance gives the Croatian national team a strong position ahead of the final stage of the championships, because the three finalists have already secured at least silver medals. The result carries particular weight because it was achieved at the senior continental championships, the most important European competition of the season. The European Karate Federation states that the championships in Frankfurt are being held at Eissporthalle Frankfurt, a multipurpose sports complex in the eastern part of the city, and the medal and final bouts are scheduled for the weekend, after the elimination part of the competition. According to the organizers’ data, more than 500 athletes from 50 countries are competing at the championships, while the Croatian Karate Federation announced before the start of the competition that Croatian colours are being defended by 26 karatekas and eight para-karatekas.
Sgardelli continues her run of major European performances
Ema Sgardelli arrived in Frankfurt as one of Croatia’s most prominent hopes. In its preview of the championships, the Croatian Karate Federation recalled that Sgardelli won the European champion title in the category up to 50 kilograms at last year’s European Championships in Yerevan and that by doing so she defended the gold she had won in 2024 in Zadar. By reaching the final in Frankfurt, she confirmed her continuity at the highest level and secured another European medal. According to reports by Croatian media, this is her third European final in her senior career, which further confirms her status as one of the most consistent karatekas in the lightest category.
In recent years, Sgardelli has grown into one of the most recognizable names in Croatian karate. Her results are especially important because they are being achieved in a category in which European competition is traditionally very broad and evenly matched. In karate, especially in kumite disciplines, the path to the final often includes several tactically different bouts, in which the competitor must quickly adapt to opponents with different styles. That is why every appearance in a final at the senior European Championships carries considerable weight, and a series of such results shows that this is not an isolated success but a confirmed level of international quality.
Zorko and Bećirović reach the biggest bouts of the championships
Mia Greta Zorko secured the final in the category up to 61 kilograms. The European Karate Federation announced that the Croatian representative defeated Slovakia’s Ingrid Bakoš Suchankova 5:3 in the semi-final and thus qualified for the fight for the European champion title. In the same report, the EKF pointed out that this was the biggest result of her career, noting that she had previously won bronze at a Karate 1 Series A tournament. Zorko thus brought the Croatian national team one of the key results in the women’s kumite programme and secured another medal in a category in which outcomes are often decided by a very small points difference.
Sadea Bećirović secured the final in the category up to 68 kilograms. According to the announcement by the European Karate Federation, Bećirović reached her first continental final in that category with a victory against Spain’s María Isabel Nieto Mejias. In the final stage, she awaits France’s Thalya Sombe, the reigning world champion, who defeated Ukraine’s Elina Sieliemienieva 4:0 in the semi-final. That fact shows how demanding the final bout will be, but also how significant the success is for the Croatian representative, who has reached the final stage among the best European competitors in her category.
Bećirović had previously been an important part of the Croatian national team, especially in team appearances. In Croatian karate, her name is associated with consistent results in domestic and international competition, and her appearance in the final of the European Championships in Frankfurt further strengthens her position among the leading Croatian female karatekas. For the Croatian women’s national team, it is especially important that three finalists have broken through in three different categories, because that shows the breadth and quality of the programme, not only reliance on one individual star.
Three Croatian male karatekas in the fight for bronze
In the men’s competition, Croatia will have three bronze-medal bouts on Saturday. Ivan Terihaj will compete in the category up to 75 kilograms, Ivan Kvesić in the category up to 84 kilograms, and Anđelo Kvesić in the heaviest category, over 84 kilograms. According to the European Karate Federation’s report from the opening of the championships, Anđelo Kvesić lost in the semi-final of the category over 84 kilograms to Turkish representative Uğur Aktaş by a score of 2:0. Aktaş is a four-time European champion and one of the most decorated competitors in European karate, so that defeat does not diminish the value of Kvesić’s path to the medal bout.
Ivan Kvesić, the reigning 2025 European champion in the category up to 84 kilograms, will also compete in Frankfurt in a bronze-medal match. The European Karate Federation announced that he lost in the semi-final to Greece’s Konstantinos Mastrogiannis by a score of 5:0. Mastrogiannis is, according to the same source, the 2024 European champion, which confirms that this was a duel between competitors from the very top of European karate. Kvesić thus remains in the fight for another medal, and bronze would bring him a continuation of his run of major results on the continental stage.
Ivan Terihaj completed Croatia’s men’s performance by securing a fight for bronze in the category up to 75 kilograms. Although available public reports do not provide an equally detailed description of his path through the draw as they do for some other categories, it has been confirmed that he too will compete on Saturday in a medal match. For the Croatian national team, this is important because the category up to 75 kilograms belongs to one of the most competitive men’s divisions. Qualification for a medal bout at the European Championships in such competition means that Terihaj passed through a demanding elimination path and kept Croatia in the fight for medals in the middle men’s category as well.
The championships in Frankfurt bring together Europe’s elite
The European Senior Championships in Frankfurt are the 61st edition of the continental karate and para-karate championships. According to the preview by the Croatian Karate Federation, the competition is being held from Wednesday 20 to Sunday 24 May, with the participation of 600 karatekas from 51 countries and 71 para-karatekas from 20 countries. The European Karate Federation states in its preview of the championships that this is the main event of the European karate season and that the continent’s elite are gathering in Frankfurt. The organizer also emphasized that team competitions carry additional importance because they also serve as a qualification pathway toward the Karate World Cup later in the season.
The competition is taking place according to the classic elimination system, and the final medal bouts are being held on Saturday and Sunday. This means that the Croatian representatives have already completed the most difficult part of the path through the draw, but the bouts that decide the final colour of the medals still await them. Unlike tournaments in a league format, continental championships leave little room for error. One weaker opening to a bout, a tactical mistake or an opponent’s point at the right moment can decide the outcome, which is why appearances in finals and bronze-medal matches are exceptionally valuable indicators of form.
Frankfurt is hosting the championships at a time when European karate is in a very strong competitive phase. Turkey, France, Italy, Spain, Ukraine, Greece and Azerbaijan regularly have competitors in the final stages of major competitions, and Croatia has in recent years remained among the countries winning medals in multiple categories. In its preview, the European Karate Federation specifically listed Croatia among the national teams with a large number of registered athletes, alongside Turkey and France. Such breadth of participation is important for continuity of results because it enables the national team to fight for medals in individual, team and para-karate categories.
Croatia defends its reputation from Yerevan and Zadar
Croatian karate arrived in Frankfurt with high expectations, but also with a strong results foundation. The Croatian Karate Federation recalled that Croatian karatekas and para-karatekas won eight medals at the 2025 European Championships in Yerevan: three gold, three silver and two bronze. European champion titles were then won by Ema Sgardelli in the category up to 50 kilograms, Ivan Kvesić in the category up to 84 kilograms and Daniela Topić in para-karate, category K22. The preview of the championships also stated that Sgardelli thereby won her second individual European champion title, while Ivan Kvesić claimed his first individual European gold in Armenia.
A year earlier, at the 2024 European Championships in Zadar, Croatia also achieved notable results. The Croatian Karate Federation recalled that silver medals in Zadar were won by Anđelo Kvesić in the category over 84 kilograms, the Croatian men’s team in bouts and para-karateka Stipe Barić in category K22, while bronze medals were won by Nikolina Golomboš in the category over 68 kilograms and para-karateka Josip Šteko in category K10. These results show that the performance in Frankfurt is not an isolated success, but a continuation of a multi-year period in which Croatian karate has regularly reached the final stages of major European competitions.
That is precisely why the three women’s finals in Frankfurt have additional symbolic value. According to a report by Večernji list, never before had three Croatian female karatekas reached the final at the same senior European Championships. If that information is confirmed in the official statistics after the end of the competition, Frankfurt will remain recorded as one of the most successful championships for Croatian women’s karate. Even before the final bouts, it is clear that Sgardelli, Zorko and Bećirović have secured a result that will have a special place in the history of the national team.
Para-karate and team appearances remain an important part of the championships
Alongside the individual kumite programme, the Croatian national team is also competing in para-karate and team disciplines in Frankfurt. The Croatian Karate Federation announced that Croatia is represented in para-karate by Daniela Topić, Leticija Ivanac, Stipe Barić, Roko Boduljak, Petar Harambašić, Toma Goatti Matijević, Josip Šteko and Niko Žutelija. This part of the national team has brought important medals in recent years, and Daniela Topić arrived in Germany as the defending European champion in category K22 and one of Croatia’s most successful female para-karatekas.
The team part of the competition is also important. The European Karate Federation emphasized that the team competitions in Frankfurt serve as a qualification pathway for the upcoming Karate World Cup, with qualification achieved through the best results in four team categories. For Croatia, this is an additional competitive goal, especially because the men’s and women’s kumite national teams have had continuity of international appearances for years. In such a system, individual successes can raise the confidence of the entire national team, but the team part requires a different dynamic, broader rotation and stability across several encounters.
Eight Croatian judges are also participating in Frankfurt. According to the announcement by the Croatian Karate Federation, the judges at the championships are Tomislava Jukić, Damir Burić, Monika Berulec, Marijan Kos, Jadranka Kovačević, Miroslav Lončar, Duško Ban and Ivana Šoić. The participation of Croatian judges at a major European competition shows that Croatian karate is present not only through competitors, but also through professional and judging personnel. This is important for the international visibility of the federation and for the development of the domestic competition structure.
Saturday brings decisions on the first Croatian medals
Saturday’s programme will be crucial for the Croatian national team because it brings medal bouts in which the final performance in the individual categories will be decided. Sgardelli, Zorko and Bećirović enter the finals with silver secured, but with the opportunity to bring European golds to Croatian karate. Terihaj and Ivan and Anđelo Kvesić will fight for bronze and can further increase Croatia’s medal count. According to the preview by the European Karate Federation, the medal days will be available via broadcast on the YouTube channel of the World Karate Federation, which will make it possible to follow the final stage of the championships from Frankfurt.
In sporting terms, Croatia’s performance already has the characteristics of a major team result. Three finals and three bronze-medal bouts in the individual programme show that the national team entered the final stage in Frankfurt with several strong cards, in both women’s and men’s competition. The final assessment of the championships will depend on the Saturday and Sunday bouts, but by qualifying for the final stage, Croatia has already confirmed its status as one of the relevant karate national teams in Europe. At a time when continental competition is widening more and more, such a result has both sporting and developmental significance for Croatian karate.
Sources:
- Croatian Karate Federation – composition of the Croatian national team, data on the appearance in Frankfurt and results context from previous European championships (link)
- European Karate Federation – preview of the 2026 European Senior Championships in Frankfurt, competition programme, number of participants and significance of team categories (link)
- European Karate Federation – report on finalists and first-day results, including the appearances of Sadea Bećirović, Mia Greta Zorko, Ivan Kvesić and Anđelo Kvesić (link)
- Sportske novosti – report on the three Croatian female finalists and three Croatian male karatekas in bronze-medal bouts (link)
- Večernji list – report on the historic achievement of three Croatian female finalists at the same European Championships (link)