Tbilisi ready to host 2026 European Open Championships

The stage is set for the Tbilisi 2026 European Open Championships, scheduled to take place from 6 to 11 March at the Hotels & Preference Hualing. It marks the second consecutive time that Georgia will host the European Open Championships, having successfully welcomed athletes from across the continent in 2022.

Tbilisi has previously proved itself an outstanding Para Powerlifting host, staging not only the European Open Championships but also the World Cup on five occasions, as well as the World Championships in 2021.

Tbilisi 2026 is a mandatory event on the pathway to the LA28 Paralympic Games and the first of four regional championships scheduled for 2026.

A total of 196 athletes from 27 National Paralympic Committees, including the Refugee Paralympic Team, will compete for medals in Georgia.

There will be 68 female athletes and 128 male athletes contesting 20 medal events scheduled between 6 and 10 March. The final day of competition (11 March) is reserved for the mixed team event and the men’s team event.

Currently, three teams are entered in the mixed team event and six in the men’s team event.

Russia lead the entry list with 30 athletes (14 men and 16 women), while hosts Georgia follow with 29 competitors, 22 in the men’s events and seven in the women’s competition.

Home favourites and men’s contenders

The host nation’s biggest star, Akaki Jintcharadze, will be in action on 10 March in the men’s over 107kg bodyweight category. The reigning European champion arrives in strong form, having claimed bronze medals at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and the Cairo 2025 World Championships last October.

WHAT. A. FINISH.

Perfect ending to the individual events at 🇬🇪 #Tbilisi2022 as Akaki Jintcharadze earns the hosts their first ever European title.

🥇🇬🇪 Akaki Jintcharadze - 228kg
🥈🇹🇷 Faruk Ozturk - 227kg
🥉🇬🇷 Konstantinos Dimou - 221kg#ParaPowerlifting @Paralympics pic.twitter.com/YVsRu3H1Fq

— Para Powerlifting (@Powerlifting) September 28, 2022

Türkiye’s Abdullah Kayapinar, the reigning world champion and Paris 2024 silver medallist, could be the standout name in the men’s competition. He will be aiming to secure European gold after narrowly missing out four years ago to compatriot Muhammet Kaan Akturk in the men’s up to 49kg category.

Great Britain’s Mark Swan and Italy’s Donato Telesca return to defend their European titles. Swan will compete in the men’s up to 72kg category, having previously contested the up to 65kg division in 2022, the same category in which he claimed bronze at the Cairo 2025 World Championships.

Telesca, meanwhile, moves back to the men’s up to 80kg category, where he has a gold from Tbilisi 2022. He later claimed the Paralympic bronze in the up to 72kg division before competing in the men’s up to 88kg category at last year’s World Championships, where he finished fifth.

Strong Turkish presence in women’s events

In the women’s competition, Türkiye will once again be represented by several Paralympic medallists aiming for European glory. Two-time Paralympic champion Nazmiye Muratli will look to win the gold in the women’s up to 45kg category, while Besra Duman will pursue the title in the women’s up to 55kg division.

Duman arrives in Tbilisi after winning consecutive silver medals at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and the Cairo 2025 World Championships.

Great Britain’s Olivia Broome, bronze medallist at Paris 2024, will attempt to challenge Duman for gold in the same category. The pair previously faced each other in Tbilisi four years ago, when the Turkish athlete secured victory with a 120kg lift.

Olivia Broome, European and now a World champ! 🥇🇬🇧

Three clean and successful lifts were enough for her first senior World Championship gold in front of a loud Team GB! 🏋️‍♀️

Next: Paralympic gold? 👀#Dubai2023 | #ParaPowerlifting | @ParaSport | @Paralympics | @GBWeightLifting pic.twitter.com/GAF9tLf9D8

— Para Powerlifting (@Powerlifting) August 23, 2023

Another Turkish contender, Sibel Cam, will compete in the women’s up to 67kg category after earning bronze in the up to 73kg division in Paris.

Great Britain’s Louise Sugden, a bronze medallist at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, will face Republic of Ireland Paralympian Britney Arendse in the women’s up to 86kg category.

Part of a global championship series

Tbilisi 2026 is the first of four regional championships taking place this year, followed by the Bangkok 2026 Asia-Oceania Open Championships, the Oran 2026 African Open Championships, and the 2026 Parapan American Open Championships.

Live results for Tbilisi 2026 European Open Championships will be available on the link, while the live streaming will be provided through the World Para Powerlifting’s Facebook page.