Moldovan judoka Victor Sterpu has won a gold medal at the Under-23 European Judo Championships that are taking place in Croatia, IPN reports.
The 21-year-old athlete scored five victories in the 73 kg weight class, against Joao Fernando of Portugal, Cezary Tchorzewski of Poland, Adrian Sulca of Romania, Yehonatan Elbaz of Israel and Makhmadbek Makhmadbekov of Russia. In the final, he beat the Russian judoka by ippon in a game that lasted for 3 minutes and 49 seconds.
Victor Sterpu has good chances of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympic Games. He currently takes the 26th spot in the world rankings in the 73 kg class.