Senior Coach
4th Dan BeltOne of our two head coaches, Semir represented Slovakia at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, where he achieved 9th place. He again represented Australia at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. He is a 4th Dan blackbelt.
Semir was born in Podgorica, Montenegro in 1972. As a young boy, he took an interest in Judo because it was a newly emerging sport with Japanese origins. He turned out to be a natural at the sport as he participated in many juniors and then senior championships across Europe, which led to his successful sporting career. He retired in 2009 as a three-time Olympian, three-time European Medalist and three-time World Army Medalist.
After retiring, Semir acquired his Senior Coaching License and his International Judo Federation Coaching License.
In 2016 Semir (with Roman Garai) founded the UTS Judo Club to share his experience and knowledge that he gained from his career in Judo spanning more than 25 years. UTS Judo Club was formed with the idea that anyone is welcome to join. With six coaches that specialise in coaching kids to high-performance judo players, UTS Judo is a place for everyone to learn.
Semir is the heart of our school and guides its teaching. With his extensive years of judo experience, he knows what students respond to and what results in success. Semir is dedicated to expanding the knowledge of judo across Australia and helping children and adults master their bodies. We are so proud to have him represent us.
“Judo taught me that I am capable of anything… I can mentally push past anything and be victorious”.
Ronda Rousey
