Pakistan’s Malaika makes history with silver at Asian Open Judo Championship 2025

KARACHI: 20-year-old Judoka, Malaika Noor, clinched a silver medal at the Amman Asian Open Judo Championship 2025, becoming the first-ever Pakistani female to win the laurel in any Asian-level judo competition.

Competing in the 52kg category, Noor showcased an outstanding performance throughout the tournament, which included a comprehensive victory over host country Jordan’s Raneem Aljazazi in the semi-final.

Noor, however, narrowly missed out on the gold medal as she suffered a close defeat at the hands of the Saudi opponent in the final round.

The 20-year-old has been one of Pakistan’s most promising Judokas, courtesy of her consistent performances across various competitions. She also represented Pakistan at the World Junior Judo Championship in Dushanbe last year.

“The President of Pakistan Judo Federation, Col. Junaid Alam, along with the entire federation, extended heartfelt appreciation for her historic achievement,” the federation said in a statement.

Besides her, three Pakistani Judokas, including Noor Khan and Muhammad Abbas Khalil, flared until the pre-quarter finals in their respective categories.

18-year-old Noor, who was representing Balochistan and Pakistan Navy in the 60kg, won his preliminary round fight against Jordan’s Mohammad Almashaqbeh but suffered defeat against Burundi’s Raoul Brillant Nganji in the next round.

Similarly, Abbas also had a flying start to the competition as he outclassed Jordan’s Khader Alwraikat in the preliminary round of the 73kg category, but was later defeated by Lebanon‘s Ghady Moussa in the pre-quarterfinal.

Furthermore, a rising 17-year-old Judoka from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, who was competing in his first international event, thumped Jordan’s Mohammad Almseden in his opening fight before losing to Bahrain’s R. Poltoratskii in the Last 16.