Stephan Hegyi injured and one year out again, no Olympics

Austrian heavyweight Stephan Hegyi will have year take a year off after another injury and won’t be able to qualify for the Olympic Games anymore. Hegyi: “But I’m not giving up, I want to try again at the Olympics in 2028,” says the 25-year-old combatively.

In 2028 France's superstar Teddy Riner will no longer be there - whom Hegyi, by the way, believes will win Olympic gold again in his home country: "I think he's still fit enough to be able to make his dream come true in Paris."

When 15 ÖJV judoka fight for important points for Olympic qualification at the European Championships in Montpellier (FRA) next week, someone who would have loved to be there in Paris in the summer of 2024 will have to watch the championships. The first years of Stephan's judo career were a success story. When he was just 17 years old, he was able to celebrate gold at the EYOF (European Youth Olympic Festival) in Tbilisi. In 2018 (in Tel Aviv) and 2019 (in Minsk), he won bronze at the European Championships, and in 2019 he also competed in mixed doubles team finished third on the European Championship podium. But then came the setbacks.

At his first Olympic appearance in Tokyo in 2021, he was drawn against Riner of all people - it was one of three Hegyi defeats against the judo king. A year and a half ago he tore his first cruciate ligament on his left knee ("someone weighing 150 kilos hit my knee"). And when he was about to successfully return to the mats of this world after a nine-month break, Stephan slipped on a staircase and tore his Achilles tendon on the right. That was in March this year, which meant he missed the World Cup in Doha in May. And then came the third serious setback. "During the last training in Spain, I got stuck doing the last randori and again the cruciate ligament, this time on the right, was torn," complains Hegyi.

He is currently staying with his Canadian wife near Toronto until January. And sparkles with ambition. "I'm only 25 years old, still quite young for a heavyweight judoka," says Hegyi. "Now I'll take a year off and definitely won't make the mistake of starting too early again." The rehab is progressing and in a month - if everything goes well with the physiotherapy in Canada - he will be able to start running again. Next year he wants to come back, step by step. “I still have a few world and European championships until 2028, so I want to win something there too.” And in 2028, when the Olympic medal is at stake in Los Angeles, he will be 30 and in his prime heavyweight age. Hegyi will follow the European Championships in Montpellier on the Internet from Canada.