Mihajlo Simin wins judo World Championships bronze in Baku

He was trailing a South Korean opponent, and a solution seemed out of reach. Mihajlo Simin decided to try something new at that moment, and it carried him onto the podium in Baku.

The Serbia national team member and Crvena zvezda (Red Star) Judo Club judoka won the bronze medal in the 81 kilogram category at the judo World Championships on Wednesday, October 7, 2026. In the bronze medal match he beat Jonhavan Li of South Korea, turning the bout around late with two throws in a row.

After the match, Simin described what was going through his head and what was happening on the tatami:

I believe until the last second that I will win. Generally I don’t get stressed in a match, I try to keep a cool head for the whole match, even when I was losing and when it seemed at several moments that I had no answer against the Korean, who is really one of the best fighters in the world. In the end I decided to try something new and it worked. Another throw followed right away, and that is how I won. So I’m very pleased, overjoyed. Marica Perisic yesterday and me today, it’s simply an incredible feeling, truly, in the world, to be third. I think it’s one of the best things.

How did Simin reach the medal?

He had a bye in the first round. His first bout came in the second round, where he beat Ukraine’s Vladislav Kolobov with an ippon, a throw that wins the contest on the spot. In the next round, which Tanjug lists as the round of 16, Zhalgas Kairol of Kazakhstan was waiting. That bout went to a golden score extension, and Simin settled it with a throw for yuko after 5:48.

In the quarterfinal he faced the home fighter, Azerbaijan’s Omar Radzabli (Tanjug spells it Rajabli), and won by ippon again, after a little over three minutes. That put him in the semifinal.

His run stopped there. Georgia’s Tato Grigalasvili won by disqualification, hansoku-make, after 5:41. Simin finished with five bouts and four wins, and his only loss came in the semifinal, after which he had to step back onto the tatami, this time for a medal.

What did his coach and the sports director say?

Coach Bojan Dosen did not hold back after the bout:

Simin simply delighted all of us here, he fought perfectly… He showed that today he was the best at the whole tournament, that is, that right now he is the best in the world even though he won bronze. I’d like to say that, because I’m completely sure of it, and I truly hope that at the next World Championships he will be first, and even at the Olympic Games. Truly, he fought without a mistake, he listened to everything we agreed on. Simply, he is a fantastic fighter and a bright future is ahead of him.

Crvena zvezda Judo Club sports director Nikola Nikolic focused above all on how Simin recovered after the semifinal:

A truly fantastic result and an incredible ability to come back after a hard semifinal match and win a medal. A big success for Crvena zvezda and for the Serbia national team. We are only starting to expect results from Simin. Bronze shines like gold. Congratulations to the club’s board, led by Stojan Vujko and Ivan Bosnjak, as well as the president of the Judo Federation of Serbia, without whose support these results would not be possible. The World Championships have only just begun, we are waiting for the participation of Nemanja Majdov, Milica Zabic and Vidak Maljevic where Zvezda is concerned, but also other Serbian national team members such as Aleksandra Andric and Boris Rutovic.

Serbia’s second medal in two days

Simin took Serbia’s second bronze of these championships in Baku. A day earlier, on Tuesday, Marica Perisic won bronze in the 57 kilogram category. Earlier this year Simin also won bronze at the European Championships in Georgia.

The rest of the Serbian judoka are still to come to the tatami in Baku. Nikolic named Nemanja Majdov, Milica Zabic and Vidak Maljevic as the Crvena zvezda fighters expected to compete, and Aleksandra Andric and Boris Rutovic among the national team members.