For his fifth birthday, Alex Semenenko’s ’26 father gave him an unconventional gift: an introduction to judo. In his family’s Ukrainian and Georgian household—two countries where judo is highly popular—his parents always supported his participation in the sport. Now, Semenenko is one of the top judo wrestlers in the world. 

He is a member of the U.S. National team with international wins, including the 2025 Pan American Open. USA Judo ranked Semenenko the number one junior and senior in the United States as of late 2023 and early 2025.

Brown recruited Semenenko as a wrestler, but he also trains with Jimmy Pedro ’94, who competed in judo at four consecutive Olympic Games, winning bronze medals in 1996 and 2004. Pedro also won three World Championship medals, highlighted by a gold medal in 1999.

Semenenko doesn’t regret his decision to wrestle for Brown rather than just focusing on judo. “I love to train and compete more than anything else,” he said. Pedro is one of his biggest inspirations, and Semenenko hopes to “follow in his footsteps and bring home hardware from LA2028.”

Semenenko’s experience in different types of wrestling allows him to enjoy them all for different reasons. After graduation, he plans to stay close to Brown’s wrestling community. He will study in Brown’s Masters in Management program and be a resident training-center athlete for Brown Wrestling, so he can participate in camps and competitions to rack up enough points to directly qualify for the Olympics. 

For Semenenko, judo is the ultimate form of expression—or as he put it, “Judo is an art form rather than a sport.”