SouthWest Judo Academy athletes brought home seven medals from the 2026 Australian National Championships, held from 5–7 June at the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre in Carrara.
Representing Western Australia, our team earned four gold, one silver and two bronze medals across the Veterans, Cadets, Juniors and Seniors divisions. The three-day campaign also marked the first National Championships for Scott Fuerste, James Taylor and Nate Stevens.
Daniel Adamov led the way with two gold medals, winning the Veterans M4 −81 kg and Veterans M4 Kyu Grades −81 kg divisions. Arya Zale earned silver in Veterans F3 −70 kg before claiming gold in the Veterans F3 Kyu Grades −70 kg division after a hard-fought best-of-three series.
Daniel also partnered with Cody Robinson in Nage-no-Kata, with the pair finishing unplaced.
In the Cadet Women’s +70 kg division, Kayla Nae won both contests against her New South Wales opponent to secure the national title. Kayla also stepped up to compete in Junior Women’s +78 kg, where she finished unplaced.
Olivia Knights claimed bronze in Junior Women’s −57 kg. She won her quarter-final against a Queensland opponent by ippon and later secured her podium place with a counter throw for ippon in the bronze-medal contest. Olivia also reached the Senior Women’s −57 kg bronze-medal match, finishing fifth.
Jacob Read earned bronze in Senior Men’s −60 kg following a challenging campaign. After winning his quarter-final by ippon, Jacob faced Josh Katz in the semi-final, where he sustained a broken nose during an exchange. Following medical attention, he continued the contest but was defeated. Jacob then returned for the bronze-medal match and secured an ippon win over his Victorian opponent.
Daniel’s busy weekend also included fifth place in Senior Men’s Kyu Grades −81 kg and seventh in Senior Men’s −81 kg Adaptive.
Scott Fuerste competed in both Junior and Senior Men’s −73 kg, reaching the repechage in each division. His senior campaign included an opening win by yuko against a Queensland opponent.
Nate Stevens competed in Cadet Men’s −73 kg, while Cody Robinson contested Senior Men’s −66 kg and Senior Men’s Kyu Grades −66 kg. All gained valuable experience against national-level opposition.
At his first Nationals, James Taylor competed in U15 Boys −45 kg. He faced the eventual gold medallist from New South Wales in his opening contest before narrowly losing his bronze-medal match by yuko.
A special congratulations goes to Scott, James and Nate for taking the step onto the national stage. Competing at this level is a significant milestone, and we are proud of how they represented themselves, SouthWest and Western Australia.
Thank you to Judo WA and the WA State Team coaches for their preparation, guidance and support throughout the campaign. We also thank the families and supporters who helped our athletes take part.
Congratulations to every SouthWest team member. Alongside the medals, the weekend provided lessons and experience to bring back to the dojo.
