Carlos Erick Zegarra Presser
Judo shapes people, and shaping people builds a better country.
On the tatami I learned a way of seeing life: daily effort builds what lasts, and no one gets there alone. That is why I devote my work to opening doors in every region, strengthening institutions, and preparing the generations that follow. I believe in merit, in discipline, and in service, and I believe the finest legacy is a level playing field for all.
“Peruvian judo is no longer a promise; today it is a process.”
“Opportunity matters more than any position.”
“Judo unites us, trust guides us, and together we build the future.”
Career in numbers
It all began on the tatami.
I represented Peru at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the heavyweight category. In Rio 2007 I earned the bronze, judo's first podium for Peru at a Pan American Games. To that I added the gold at the 2010 Apia World Cup and twelve national titles. I tested myself against the best on the planet, among them the legendary Kosei Inoue.
Today I hold the 7th Dan, the red and white belt of judo's highest ranks. For me it is, above all, a responsibility: every rank calls for teaching more than one competes, caring for those who come next, and setting the example on and off the tatami. Judo left me a discipline I carry into all of life, respect, effort, and the will to rise one more time than I fall. I wear this belt to pass on those values, certain that the road goes on and there is always one more rank to reach.
From competitor to builder.
I led the Peruvian Judo Federation from 2013 to 2020, and since 2021 I have presided over the Pan American Judo Confederation. Through that role I serve as Vice President of the International Judo Federation. In 2025, the confederation reelected me unanimously for the 2025 to 2029 term, a mandate I take on as a shared commitment with the 36 nations that make it up.
I am the first Peruvian to preside over the Pan American Judo Confederation. In 2026, the European Judo Union honored me as Hero of the Year, a recognition I celebrate as the fruit of everyone's effort to help this sport grow.
The milestones.
Leadership that crosses borders.
I preside over judo across the Americas, 36 nations united by one project, and as Vice President of the International Judo Federation I sit at the table where the future of world sport is decided. I have brought Peru to host world championships and built bridges with authorities across several continents. At every one of those tables, I represent Peru.
Also in service of the State.
My calling to serve also led me into public administration. I served as Executive Director of the Legado Special Project, the Peruvian State body that builds and maintains the infrastructure of the Pan American Games, the legacy that stays for the country.
Before that, I served at the Peruvian Sports Institute and the Ministry of Education, in high performance, physical education, and school sport. I learned that strong institutions are what turn talent into real possibilities, in every classroom and every region.
The same starting point for every Peruvian.
In sport I learned that a single opportunity can change an entire life. My dream is that this starting point be the same for every Peruvian, from north to south, in the countryside and in the city: that every girl and every boy go as far as their effort takes them. Judo is my tool and my school of life, just as Jigoro Kano taught it: discipline, respect, and work, the values that shape people and, through them, a whole country. I give my life to this, on and off the tatami.
Let's talk.
For invitations, press, and institutional cooperation. The doors of judo are always open.