Western Australia’s developing international judoka concluded their Asian tour with another impressive medal haul at the Macau Asian Cadet and Junior Cups on 25 and 26 July 2026.
Following six medals in Hong Kong one week earlier, the WA contingent added two silver and three bronze medals in Macau.
The weekend was highlighted by Mia Siboni’s Junior Women’s −52kg silver, alongside cadet silver medals for Kaian Kelly and Zechariah Navea and bronze medals for Siboni and Oren Kelly.
WA results
| Athlete | Division | Cadet result | Junior result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaian Kelly | Men −60kg | Silver | 7th |
| Zechariah Navea | Men −55kg/−60kg | Silver | Unplaced |
| Mia Siboni | Women −52kg | Bronze | Silver |
| Oren Kelly | Women −57kg | — | Bronze |
| Lena Wolak | Women −48kg | 4th | 7th |
| Isaac Chinchilla | Men −66kg | Unplaced | Unplaced |
| Noa Hogarth | Men −66kg | — | Unplaced |
| Kayla Nae | Women +70kg | Uncontested | — |
The Macau Asian Cadet Cup attracted 121 athletes from 13 countries, while 181 competitors representing 15 countries entered the following day’s Junior Asian Cup.
Before returning to competition, the Australian team participated in a three-day international training camp in Macau, giving the athletes an opportunity to prepare alongside judoka from other participating nations.
Day 1: Macau Asian Cadet Cup
Kaian Kelly wins −60kg silver
Kaian Kelly produced an excellent four-contest performance to reach the Cadet Men’s −60kg final.
Kelly began against Saudi Arabia’s Turki Albakheet, winning a high-scoring contest after 3:59.
He then met Australian teammate Gabriel Talledo in the quarterfinal. Kelly scored a waza-ari and yuko while conceding only one penalty, advancing after the full four minutes.
Another Australian, Lochlan Cook, awaited in the semifinal. Kelly again remained composed over four minutes, with a single yuko proving enough to send him into the final.
Kelly faced Mongolia’s Davaabaatar Amgalanbaatar for gold. The Mongolian recorded a waza-ari and two yukos during the four-minute contest, leaving Kelly with an impressive silver medal from the 16-player division.
Zechariah Navea claims −55kg silver
Navea improved on his Hong Kong bronze by reaching the Cadet Men’s −55kg final in Macau.
After receiving an opening-round bye, he met Macau’s Pak In Wong in the semifinal and scored ippon after 1:36.
Kazakhstan’s Sayat Kalmurzayev proved too strong in the final, winning by ippon after 2:06.
Navea nevertheless secured silver and his second medal from consecutive Asian Cadet Cups.
Mia Siboni takes −52kg bronze
Siboni’s opening-round bye placed her against Chinese Taipei’s Lu Hsin-Yin in the quarterfinal.
Lu won by ippon after 3:36, but her progression to the final brought Siboni into the repechage.
The WA athlete defeated Macau’s Sut Ieng Ng by ippon after 1:51 to remain in medal contention.
Siboni’s scheduled bronze-medal match against fellow Australian Amelia Trainor was recorded as a victory at 0:00, giving Siboni the bronze medal and her third podium finish of the tour.
Lena Wolak narrowly misses the podium
The five-athlete Cadet Women’s −48kg competition began with preliminary pools.
Wolak opened against Saudi Arabia’s Raghad Alghamdi, who scored ippon after 40 seconds.
She responded with a full-time victory over Kyrgyzstan’s Aruuke Osmonbaieva, scoring a waza-ari and yuko.
Her pool record moved her into the knockout stage, where she faced fellow Australian Abbey Cook. Cook won by ippon after 1:07, sending Wolak into the bronze-medal contest.
Belarusian Laura Kavaleuskaya scored ippon after ten seconds in the medal match, leaving Wolak fourth under the event’s recorded placings.
Isaac Chinchilla competes at −66kg
Chinchilla received an opening-round bye in the 20-athlete Cadet Men’s −66kg division before facing Kyrgyzstan’s Umarbek Zainidinov.
Zainidinov scored ippon after 18 seconds. He was eliminated in the following round, meaning Chinchilla did not progress into the repechage and finished unplaced.
Kayla Nae’s division goes uncontested
Nae was entered in the Cadet Women’s +70kg category but was the division’s only competitor.
Although the official event report lists Nae as the sole athlete in the category, no contests were held and the published athlete result does not record a medal placing.
Day 2: Macau Junior Asian Cup
Mia Siboni wins −52kg silver
Siboni concluded her outstanding tour by reaching the Junior Women’s −52kg final.
After receiving an opening-round bye, she faced Chinese Taipei’s Zhang Zhi-Yi in the quarterfinal. A waza-ari scored during the four-minute contest was enough to carry Siboni into the semifinal.
There she met Australian teammate Amelia Trainor. Siboni again prevailed by a single waza-ari after four minutes, earning her place in the final.
Belarusian Alisiya Zharskaya scored two waza-ari to take the title after 1:30.
Siboni finished with silver—her fourth medal from four starts across Hong Kong and Macau.
Oren Kelly claims another −57kg bronze
Oren Kelly also completed a two-medal tour by adding another Junior Women’s −57kg bronze.
After an opening-round bye, Kelly faced Korea’s Jihyeon Moon. Kelly scored a waza-ari, but Moon answered with ippon after 2:38.
Moon progressed to the final, bringing Kelly into the repechage. Kelly defeated Hong Kong’s Wan Lok Lau after 2:49, scoring two waza-ari while conceding one yuko.
In the bronze-medal contest, Kelly delivered a decisive performance against Korea’s Eunji Lee, winning by ippon after only 41 seconds.
Kaian Kelly places seventh at −60kg
One day after winning cadet silver, Kelly stepped into the larger Junior Men’s −60kg division.
Following an opening-round bye, he defeated Belarusian Mikalai Machulski after 3:12 to reach the quarterfinal.
Kelly then faced Kazakhstan’s Zhanadil Abay. Kelly scored a waza-ari but accumulated a third penalty after 3:10, giving Abay the victory and sending Kelly into the repechage.
Uzbekistan’s Azizbek Raupov won the repechage contest by ippon after 2:27, leaving Kelly in seventh place.
Lena Wolak finishes seventh at −48kg
Wolak received an opening-round bye before facing Mongolia’s Soyol-Erdene Gansukh in the quarterfinal.
Gansukh recorded the decisive scores over the four-minute contest to advance.
With Gansukh reaching the semifinal, Wolak entered the repechage against Chinese Taipei’s Yang Xiu-Ying. Yang scored ippon after 57 seconds, with Wolak finishing seventh.
Isaac Chinchilla contests −66kg
Chinchilla received an opening-round bye before meeting Mongolia’s Bilguungarid Enkh-Aldar.
The match ran for the full four minutes, with Enkh-Aldar’s waza-ari separating the athletes.
Because the Mongolian was eliminated in the following round, Chinchilla did not advance into the repechage and finished unplaced.
Noa Hogarth faces eventual medallist
Hogarth’s opening Junior Men’s −66kg contest came against Uzbekistan’s Otabek Turdimatov.
Turdimatov scored two waza-ari after 1:25 and went on to win a bronze medal.
Despite facing an eventual medallist, the progression of the draw meant Hogarth was not brought into the repechage and finished unplaced.
Zechariah Navea steps into the junior ranks
Following his cadet silver, Navea entered the 25-athlete Junior Men’s −60kg division.
After receiving an opening-round bye, he faced Kazakhstan’s Yerkhan Murat. The eventual champion won by ippon after 1:03.
Despite Murat going on to take gold, the competition format did not provide Navea with a repechage opportunity from that stage of the draw.
Eleven medals across two weekends
The WA contingent concluded the Hong Kong and Macau tour with 11 medals across four competitions.
Siboni achieved the remarkable feat of reaching the podium in every event she entered, collecting two silver and two bronze medals.
Oren Kelly also medalled at both tour stops, while Kaian Kelly and Navea each secured their second medals of the campaign in Macau.
Beyond the podium finishes, the tour provided WA’s developing athletes with valuable exposure to international opponents, a three-day training camp and the physical and mental demands of competing on consecutive weekends overseas.
Congratulations to all eight WA athletes on representing Australia and Western Australia throughout a successful international tour.
