Nemanja Majdov’s hard road from sacrifice to a bigger vision for judo

Nemanja Majdov is back in the spotlight through a new JudoPod episode, and the Serbian world champion opens up about what has shaped his life in judo. His story is not built on easy wins or smooth progress, but on pain, sacrifice and a mindset that refuses to bend.

Majdov, Serbia’s first world judo champion, describes being “broken” as something very different from defeat. For him, it is a sign of everything he has endured to stay at the top. That idea runs through the whole conversation, from his early years on the road with his father to the injuries that kept testing him again and again.

As a teenager, Majdov travelled across Europe with his father, who also coached him, trying to reach competitions on a very limited budget. They often slept in their car. Those experiences left a deep mark on him, and he says the sacrifices made by his parents built the mentality that still drives him now.

That mentality was pushed to the limit in the European Championship final against Luka Maisuradze of Georgia. In golden score, Majdov tore his medial collateral ligament. It was his fourth MCL tear, on top of several ACL injuries and knee surgeries. He admitted that after losing a contest he felt he was meant to win, he cried alone in his hotel room.

For Majdov, pain became part of the price of chasing the top.

Even so, he does not present those moments as reasons to stop. Instead, they became part of his personal motto: “I am broken.” In his view, the phrase is about resilience, not surrender. It is a harsh line, but it fits a career that has repeatedly asked him to come back from physical and emotional damage.

The podcast also returns to the run that changed his career in 2017. Before the World Championships in Budapest, Majdov publicly said he would become world champion. He even counted down the weeks on social media. When he actually delivered on that prediction, his reaction became unforgettable for many judo fans: he said he was not surprised.

There is also a lighter moment that says a lot about judo culture. Before facing his close friend Lasha Bekauri, Majdov was asked for help in a strange way: Bekauri needed to borrow Majdov’s judogi trousers because his own had ripped. Majdov agreed immediately. The story captures something rare in elite sport, where fierce rivalry can still exist alongside mutual respect.

Away from competition, Majdov speaks with just as much energy about the future of judo. He believes the sport should aim for greater visibility, stronger promotion and better athlete branding. Among the ideas he raises are prime-time finals, fight-night style events and encouraging judoka to build their public identity more actively.

He is already trying to move in that direction through the Majdov Academy, which brings world champions to work with young athletes across the Balkans. It is a project that matches his wider belief that elite judoka should be treated like heroes because of what they achieve on the mat.

Now a father of two, Majdov says his biggest concern is no longer only about himself. He wonders whether his children will grow up with the same hunger that carried him from sleeping in cars to becoming world champion.

His story is as much about comeback mentality as it is about medals.

This JudoPod episode presents Majdov as more than a title winner. It shows an athlete still defined by struggle, still proud of what those scars mean, and still pushing for judo to think bigger.

Source: IJF.org

Image source: IJF / International Judo Federation