uAmong the twenty Russian judoka admitted by the International Judo Federation (IJF) to the forthcoming world championships in Qatar is military world champion Inal Tasoyev. As the IJF announced, eight judoka were rejected after “thorough background checks” regarding their employer and “pro-war propaganda” in social networks. Nevertheless, in addition to Tasoyev, who, according to the Russian Judo Association, was also the winner of the “Military World Games 2019”, four other medal winners from the most recent military world championships of judoka, held in autumn 2021, were admitted.
Ukrainian media reports that five and ten other judoka admitted as “individual neutral athletes” belong to the Russian Armed Forces, the National Guard or the Central Army Sports Club CSKA. According to the IJF, the Russian athletes admitted to the World Cup starting on Sunday are employees of the National Training Center. The Ukrainian Judo Federation has announced its withdrawal from the World Championships because of the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes.
In a press release published on Tuesday, the association did not provide any further information as to who carried out the examination for the IJF and according to which standards it was judged. Accordingly, the association, which is committed to “promoting equal opportunities and transparency”, has processed the list of athletes nominated by the Russian association. Why eight proposed judoka were rejected and who they are was also not formulated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, author of a textbook (“Judo with Vladimir Putin”), was honorary president of the IJF for years and long after the start of the land grab in eastern Ukraine. Only after the Russian war of aggression was unleashed against the neighboring country was Putin suspended as honorary president of the IJF under its president Marius Vizer, as was the entrepreneur and Putin confidant Arkady Rotenberg, who had been a member of the board until then.
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