Acelya Toprak made no secret of her ambition to turn Birmingham silver into Glasgow gold and described herself as ‘over the moon’ after doing just that.
The 29-year-old judoka triumphed in the women’s -57kg category, defeating India’s Yamini Mourya in a tense final which was decided by golden score.
Toprak held her nerve to get the job done, forcing Mourya into a third shido which resulted in disqualification, to cap a fantastic Friday for England’s judokas, who brought home five medals in all.
“I said I wasn’t leaving with a silver again this year,” she said. “I wanted the gold.
“It was a tough fight, gave it everything I had. It didn’t finish it the way I wanted to, I wanted an ippon, but a win is a win and I’m happy to have taken the gold.
“I’m over the moon. Any medal at the Commonwealth Games is amazing but I wanted the gold so badly. I’m relieved and happy that it’s done. It’s been a long time coming.
“I’m happy to have finished on a high and finally got the gold. I had to dig in a bit there. She was really physical. We’ve never fought before or even trained before so I didn’t expect the intensity.”
Toprak had to overcome a familiar face at the semi-final stage, defeating compatriot Lele Nairne, and hopes her new addition to her trophy cabinet will take pride of place in the family home.
“I’m hoping this time the gold will go up in my mum’s house as I think the silver is in the loft,” she said.
“Hopefully the gold will be on the wall – I’ll be having a word if not!”
Nairne picked herself up after defeat to Toprak to beat Ghana’s Fremi Agyei in the bronze medal match and land her first Commonwealth Games medal, having been beaten at the same stage in Birmingham.
The 28-year-old from Weston-super-Mare, who took a break from the sport after representing Team GB at the Paris 2024 Olympics, said: “I feel great. I worked really hard for it. For me it was a mental game, I didn’t want to miss out on a medal again.
“I had to keep my head level today. I lost in the semi-finals and I needed to reset and go again. I’m so happy – this is only my third competition back.”
Nairne was one of four English bronze medallists, with Charlie Ayre ending on the podium in the men’s -60kg.
The Teessider was beaten by Australia’s Joshua Katz in his semi-final but defeated Kenyan Regan Wali to ensure he heads back south of the border with silverware.
“I’m more relieved that I got it done in the bronze final rather than happy because it’s not the medal I came for,” he said.
“I take a lot of experience from it. There’s a few things I could have done differently judo wise but it’s great to say I’m a Commonwealth medallist.”
Tatum Keen prevailed in a battle of Britain to land bronze in the women’s -52kg, getting the better of Wales’ Lola Hodson.
“I was devastated after losing the semi-final and I had to pull it together and put it all into the bronze,” she said.
“I fight every week with her at the national centre and I have so many fifth places so I was really feeling the pressure.
“But I’m so relieved and happy. With my family here, it’s amazing. I am having the time of my life. I wasn’t an hour ago, but I am now.”
Michael Fryer was beaten at the quarter-final stage in the men’s -66kg but after coming through his repechage bout, he defeated Nigeria’s Michael Agbo to finish on the podium.
“It means a lot,” he said. “I didn’t qualify in time for Birmingham, which hurt.
“I wanted to come away with definitely a medal and I’ve done that, so I’m really happy. A lot of work has gone into this, a lot of ups and downs, some injuries, some good performances and some not so good performances.
“To be here and put on a bit of a performance, I’m really happy with that.”
Sportsbeat 2026
