The 2025 EWF European Youth and U15 Championships began today, 23.07.2025 with intense competition and impressive performances at the opening sessions.
The first session of the day featured the Girls U15, 40kg category. Olena Mykhaliuk from Ukraine secured gold with a total of 125kg (55kg snatch and 70kg clean & jerk). It was a tight contest, with Türkiye’s Asel Şenel just one kilogram behind at 124kg (57kg snatch and 67kg clean & jerk), earning silver. The bronze went to Ercin Naz Şahin, also from Türkiye, lifting a total of 120kg (53kg snatch and 67kg clean & jerk).
The Women Youth 44kg group followed, showcasing another nail-biting finish. Tugba Kaya of Türkiye clinched gold by a narrow margin, lifting 134kg (58kg snatch and 76kg clean & jerk). Her teammate Fatma Kolcak took silver with 133kg (60kg snatch and 73kg clean & jerk), while Ukraine’s Oleksandra Shyliaieva completed the podium with bronze, lifting 127kg (58kg snatch and 69kg clean & jerk).
In the Men’s Youth 56kg category, Lucian Cambei from Romania won gold with a total lift of 227kg (107kg snatch and 120kg clean & jerk). Lucian, brother of Olympic medalist Mihaela Cambei, is successfully following in his sister’s footsteps. Türkiye continued their strong start with Yigit Erdogan earning silver (100kg snatch, 122kg clean & jerk, total 222kg) and Muammer Kurt securing bronze (98kg snatch, 121kg clean & jerk, total 219kg).
The day concluded with the Men’s U15, 52kg category, where Italy’s Christian Di Maria dominated the competition with a total of 218kg (98kg snatch and 120kg clean & jerk). Christian, already recognized for his achievements earlier this year at the 2025 IWF Youth Championships in Lima, improved his previous total by 4kg. Borislav Aliyanov of Bulgaria won silver (79kg snatch, 98kg clean & jerk, total 177kg), and Georgia’s Saba Kutchava took bronze (75kg snatch, 99kg clean & jerk, total 174kg).
Today’s competitions highlighted a strong showing from Team Türkiye, securing multiple medals across categories. It was also remarkable to see the continued success of Lucian Cambei and Christian Di Maria, both demonstrating promising futures in weightlifting.
Detailed results are available on our official website, and all sessions can be watched live on the EWF YouTube channel.
We wish all athletes good luck in the upcoming days of the competition.
By EWF Media