Arik Ze'evi
Arik Ze'eviIsrael news photo: Flash 90

Israeli Judoka Arik Ze'evi won the European Judo Championship for the fourth time in his career Saturday.

Ze'evi beat a Georgian adversary, Lavan Georgiolani, in the final round of the tournament, which was held in Russia.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu phoned Ze'evi and congratulated him on his victory. "Mazal tov, you have moved all of us," he said. "You won a victory for the state of Israel, you brought us a lot of honor and hope."

Netanyahu wished Ze'evi success in the upcoming London Olympics. Ze'evi did not do well in the Beijing Olympics of 2008, where he lost out at an early stage.