Pakistani judoka Malaika Noor has made history by claiming a silver medal at the 2025 Amman Asian Open Judo Championship, becoming the first Pakistani woman to win a medal at any Asian-level judo event.
Competing in the 52kg category, the 20-year-old impressed with skill and determination throughout the tournament, including a convincing semi-final win over Jordan’s Raneem Aljazazi.
In the final, she narrowly lost to her Saudi opponent, securing second place.
Malaika Noor has been one of Pakistan’s most promising judokas, known for her consistent performances in various competitions.
She also represented Pakistan at last year’s World Junior Judo Championship in Dushanbe.
“The President of the Pakistan Judo Federation, Col. Junaid Alam, along with the entire federation, expressed 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.