[4][5] In 2001, Yildiz reached the pinnacle of her judo career at the Mediterranean Games, where she became the first female Turkish judoka to capture the gold medal in her sport upon pinning Italy's Giuseppina Macrì in the final match by an ippon score.

[6] Two years later, Yildiz shared bronze medals with Cuba's Danieska Carrión in the same division at the 2003 World Judo Championships in Osaka, Japan to guarantee her spot on the Turkish team for her second Olympic stint.

[7] At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Yildiz qualified as a lone female judoka for her second Turkish squad in the women's extra-lightweight class (48 kg), by placing third and receiving a berth from the World Championships in Osaka, Japan.

[9][10] Shortly after her second Olympic stint, Yildiz redeemed her strength to pick up two more bronze medals in her career hardware at the 2005 Mediterranean Games in Almería, Spain, and later at the 2005 European Judo Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

[11] The following year, Yildiz capped off her judo career with a silver medal in the 48-kg division at the European Championships in Tampere, Finland, losing the final match to Romanian judoka and reigning champion Alina Dumitru.