Akil Gjakova

Akil Gjakova (born 4 January 1996) is a Kosovo Albanian judoka. He is a gold medalist at the Mediterranean Games and the 2021 European Judo Championships.

Akil Gjakova

Akil Gjakova (white) participates in the Austrian Ersten Judo-Bundesliga 2021
Personal information
Nationality	Kosovan
Born	(1996-01-04) 4 January 1996 (age 29) Peja, FR Yugoslavia (now Kosovo)
Occupation	Judoka
Height	174 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	73 kg (161 lb)
Sport
Country	Kosovo
Sport	Judo
Weight class	‍–‍73 kg
Rank	1st dan black belt[1]
Achievements and titles
Olympic Games	5th (2024)
World Champ.	R16 (2018, 2023, 2025)
European Champ.	(2021)
Medal record Men's judo Representing  Kosovo European Championships 2021 Lisbon ‍–‍73 kg 2023 Montpellier ‍–‍73 kg European Championships Open 2023 Pristina ‍–‍73 kg IJF Grand Slam 2018 Paris ‍–‍73 kg 2018 Abu Dhabi ‍–‍73 kg 2023 Abu Dhabi ‍–‍73 kg 2025 Paris ‍–‍73 kg 2024 Paris ‍–‍73 kg IJF Grand Prix 2018 Zagreb ‍–‍73 kg 2019 Budapest ‍–‍73 kg 2018 Tunis ‍–‍73 kg 2018 The Hague ‍–‍73 kg European U23 Championships 2018 Győr ‍–‍73 kg 2017 Podgorica ‍–‍73 kg 2016 Tel Aviv ‍–‍73 kg European Cadet Championships 2013 Tallinn ‍–‍66 kg Mediterranean Games 2018 Tarragona ‍–‍73 kg 2022 Oran ‍–‍73 kg
Profile at external databases
IJF	7826
JudoInside.com	89913
Updated on 15 June 2025

Career

He won the gold medal in the men's 73 kg event at the 2018 Mediterranean Games held in Tarragona, Spain.^[2]

In 2021, he won the gold medal in the men's 73 kg event at the European Judo Championships held in Lisbon, Portugal.^[3][4]

He represented Kosovo at the 2015 European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan and the 2019 European Games in Minsk, Belarus.

Personal life

His sister Nora Gjakova is also a judoka and the 2020 Olympics gold medalist in the women's 57 kg judo event ^[5][6]

Achievements

Year	Tournament	Place	Weight class
2017	Jeux de la Francophonie	1st	−73 kg
2018	Mediterranean Games	1st	−73 kg
2021	European Championships	1st	−73 kg
2023	European Championships Open	1st	−73 kg