Majlinda Kelmendi

Majlinda Kelmendi (born 9 May 1991) is a Kosovan-Albanian former judoka and judo coach.
In 2014, Majlinda topped the IJF Women's Prestige World Ranking List. On 7 August 2016, she became the first Kosovan athlete to win a medal at the Olympic Games when she claimed gold in the women's 52 kg category at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She also represented Albania at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Early life
Majlinda Kelmendi was born on 9 May 1991 into a Kosovo Albanian family in the city of Peja, then part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, present-day Kosovo. She was the cousin (aunt's daughter) of the Swedish footballer of Kosovan descent Labinot Harbuzi.
Career
In 2009, Kelmendi won the gold medal at the World Junior Championships in Paris. In 2010, she came 5th at the World Junior Championships in Morocco and finished 9th in the 52 kg category at the 2010 World Judo Championships in Tokyo, Japan. She defeated Jaana Sundberg in the first round of the 2012 Olympics but then lost to Christianne Legentil in the second round.
At the 2013 World Judo Championships, Kelmendi gave Kosovo its first ever judo world title as she beat Brazil's Érika Miranda in the 52 kg gold medal match in Rio de Janeiro. The 22-year-old – the first Kosovar judoka to win a medal at the championships since Kosovo's declaration of independence in 2008 – was not a shock winner as she came to Rio de Janeiro ranked number one in her category having won the prestigious 2013 World Masters event. Kelmendi retained the world title in 2014. She only lost twice in 2013 and had beaten everyone of note in her division. She did not defend her title the following year due to injury.
In February 2016, she won the gold medal at Paris Grand Slam, making her third consecutive title after winning in 2014 and 2015. Two months later, she earned a gold medal at the 2016 European Championships in Kazan, Russia. At the 2016 Summer Olympics she became the first ever Kosovan athlete to win a gold medal, or any medal at all, for Kosovo at an Olympic Games. Controversy arose when reports emerged that she had declined to take an unscheduled doping control test in June in France; her trainer insists she is clean, and that she refused due to the tester having no authorisation from WADA.
Due to the resistance of International Olympic Committee and the United Nations, Kelmendi was unable to represent Kosovo at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Also, IOC turned down Kelmendi's request to compete as an independent athlete. Kelmendi chose to represent Albania, as the vast majority of Kosovars are ethnic Albanians.
In October 2014, the International Olympic Committee provisionally recognised the Olympic Committee of Kosovo and gave it full membership on 9 December 2014. Kosovo participated at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the country's first appearance at an Olympic event. Kelmendi was Kosovo's flag bearer during the Parade of Nations of the opening ceremony in Rio. Her gold medal in those games was Kosovo's first ever Olympic medal. She is also a citizen of Albania and has an Albanian passport.
In 2021, she won one of the bronze medals in her event at the 2021 Judo World Masters held in Doha, Qatar. A month later, she won one of the bronze medals in her event at the 2021 Judo Grand Slam Tel Aviv held in Tel Aviv, Israel. She competed in the women's 52 kg event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
Statistics
Medals record
Source:
2009
52 kg − World Cup, Prague
2010
52 kg − World Cup, Sofia
52 kg − European Cup, Sarajevo
52 kg − Grand Prix, Tunis
52 kg − World Cup, Tallinn
2011
52 kg − World Cup, Sofia
52 kg − Grand Prix, Düsseldorf
52 kg − World Cup, Lisbon
52 kg − World Cup, Rome
52 kg − World Cup, Minsk
52 kg − Grand Prix, Abu Dhabi
52 kg − Grand Prix, Amsterdam
2012
52 kg − European Cup, Prague
52 kg − World Cup, Rome
52 kg − World Cup, Istanbul
52 kg − Grand Prix, Abu Dhabi
2013
52 kg − Grand Slam, Paris
52 kg − Grand Prix, Düsseldorf
52 kg − Grand Prix, Samsun
52 kg − European Championships, Budapest
52 kg − World Masters, Tyumen
52 kg − World Championships, Rio de Janeiro
2014
52 kg − Grand Slam, Paris
52 kg − Grand Prix, Samsun
52 kg − European Championships, Montpellier
52 kg − Grand Prix, Budapest
52 kg − World Championships, Chelyabinsk
52 kg − Grand Slam, Abu Dhabi
2015
52 kg − European Cup, Prague
52 kg − World Cup, Lisbon
52 kg − Grand Slam, Paris
52 kg − Grand Slam, Abu Dhabi
2016
52 kg − Grand Slam, Paris
52 kg − European Championships, Kazan
52 kg − Grand Prix, Budapest
52 kg − Olympic Games, Rio de Janeiro
2017
52 kg − Grand Slam, Paris
52 kg − European Championships, Warsaw
2018
52 kg − Grand Slam, Abu Dhabi
52 kg − Grand Prix, Tashkent
2019
52 kg − Grand Prix, Tel Aviv
52 kg − Grand Slam, Düsseldorf
52 kg − European Games, Minsk
52 kg − World Championships, Tokyo
52 kg − Grand Slam, Abu Dhabi
2021
52 kg − World Masters, Doha
References
External links
1991 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Peja
World judo champions
Judoka trainers
Kosovan female judoka
Olympic judoka for Kosovo
Judoka at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Olympic medalists in judo
Olympic gold medalists for Kosovo
European Games medalists in judo
European Games gold medalists for Kosovo
Judoka at the 2019 European Games
Judoka at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Albanian female judoka
Olympic judoka for Albania
Judoka at the 2012 Summer Olympics