Jessica Wolf, Verena Buchloh and Kaize Zhou will represent KIT at this year's European Universities Championships (EUC) Combat Sports. Jessica will compete in the women's -57 kg class and Kaize in the men's -58 kg class in Taekwondo. Verena will be competing in the women's -57 kg judo category. After her successful 1st place at the German University Championships in 2023, Jessica was able to build on this success and win 1st place at the German University Championships in 2024. Kaize and Verena achieved 3rd place in their respective classes at the German University Championships 2024. With these results, they have qualified for this year's EUC, which will take place from 21 to 26 August in Warsaw, Poland. Many fighters from various European nations who have already celebrated international successes are expected to attend.

As part of her preparations for the EUC, Jessica also took part in various international competitions in spring, including the FISU World Universities Games in Essen. Kaize was also runner-up in the Baden-Württemberg championships in autumn 2024. In preparation, Verena competed in both the Bavarian league and the national league this season and also completed a one-week training camp in Croatia.

Even though judo and taekwondo are both martial arts, the competition differs immensely. In judo, the aim is to throw the opponent onto their back using targeted throwing techniques. Points can also be scored on the ground through holds, chokes and levers. A particularly successful throw, the submission of the opponent or the successful holding of a hold for 20 seconds can decide the fight prematurely. The aim of the Olympic duel in Taekwondo, on the other hand, is to score points through targeted kicks and punches on permitted target areas: One point is awarded for a fist strike to the vest, two points for a kick to the vest and three points for a kick to the head. Two additional points are awarded for spinning kicks. A fight consists of three rounds of two minutes each; a fight can also be decided prematurely if the opponent gives up or is knocked out.