Picture by IJF/Di Feliciantonio Emanuele
What a week it was at the 2024 Judo World Championships, which ran from 19-24 May in Abu Dhabi. With the final major qualification points for Olympic Games Paris 2024 up for grabs, the judo world rose to the occasion, delivering surprises at every turn.
Remarkably, only three world number ones claimed gold, while seven world number twos emerged as world champions. Only one world title was successfully defended, and 13 new world champions were crowned. Where do we begin?
Discover some top surprises and historic moments from the latest world judo championships.
This year's championships highlighted several young judokas stepping up and disrupting the established order across multiple weight categories.
In the -57kg category, 21-year-old Huh Mimi of the Republic of Korea delivered one of the event's most stunning upsets. Huh overcame both Canadian giants of the category: world number two Jessica Klimkait in the semi-final and reigning world champion Christa Deguchi in the final. The victory positions Huh as a big threat to Deguchi leading into Paris.
A similar story played out for Joanne Van Lieshout of the Netherlands in the -63kg discipline, who took down world number one Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard, another Canadian, on her way to the final.
With world and Olympic champion Clarisse Agbegnenou of soon-to-be Olympic hosts France taking the bronze medal, the door was open for Van Lieshout.
The 21-year-old Van Lieshout eventually got the best of her Polish opponent, Angelika Szymanska, in the final, becoming the first female world champion for the Netherlands since Marhinde Verkerk in 2009. This victory added to her impressive resume, which includes two junior world titles from 2021 and 2022, and a senior world bronze in 2023.
The men's lightweight categories also welcomed two brand-new world champions. At the beginning of the day, Japan’s Ryuju Nagayama was predicted to take his first senior world title at -60kg. However, in a shocking turn of events, the Japanese Olympic select was eliminated in the second round.
Instead, Georgia’s Giorgi Sardalashvili seized the moment, defeating Olympic silver medallist Yang Yung Wei to become Georgia’s youngest world champion ever at just 20 years old.
At -66 kg, only three of the eight seeded players upheld their rankings and advanced to the quarter-finals. With the category’s superstar Abe Hifumi preparing for the Olympic Games, 22-year-old Ryoma Tanaka ensured that Japan's dominance in this category continued, securing the -66kg world title that has been in Japan's possession since 2017.
The 2024 Abu Dhabi World Judo Championships were marked by incredible performances from a diverse array of countries, highlighting the global reach and inclusivity of the sport. Athletes from Finland, Sweden, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan made their mark, bringing home medals and Olympic quotas.
The last time a Finnish judoka stood on the world championship podium was in 1981 when Juha Salonen claimed a bronze medal at the Maastricht World Championships in the +95kg category.
Fast forward 43 years, and on 19 May, 25-year-old Luukas Saha stepped onto the mat at the Abu Dhabi World Championships ranked 38th in the world. Saha had virtually no hope of securing a quota for the Paris Olympics, being ten places shy of direct qualification. Yet, the Finnish judoka delivered a spectacular performance, ending the medal drought by winning the bronze in the -66 kg category and securing his Olympic quota in the process.
“It’s been more than 40 years since a Finnish judoka won a world medal,” Saha said in an IJF interview. “This is a special feeling for sure. I’m glad someone finally did it and I’m glad it’s me because I put the work in towards it, we all did. This is exactly the result I think we all needed, as a team. This is something to lift everyone’s spirits and make them believe they can really do it."
Sweden also celebrated a historic moment at the Abu Dhabi World Championships as Tara Babulfath captured her first senior world championship medal. The 18-year-old judoka, who had previously won cadet world medals in 2022 and 2023, claimed her first senior world bronze this week.
This makes her only the second female athlete in the history of Swedish judo to win a medal at the Senior World Championships. Babulfath's performance has secured her quota for the Paris Olympics, where she has the potential to become Sweden's first Olympic medalist in judo.
In the -73 kg category, Somon Makhmadbekov put Tajikistan back on the world podium winning his country’s second world championship medal in Tajikistan’s history, following Rasul Boqiev’s bronze in 2007. His medal marked a significant achievement for Tajik judo and a source of immense national pride.
Erlan Sherov won the first-ever world championship medal for Kyrgyzstan, by securing bronze and setting an example for the future generations of judoka in his country.
The stakes were incredibly high at the 2024 World Judo Championships, as judokas from around the globe fought not only for world titles but also for the coveted Olympic quotas.
With only one athlete per nation per category allowed to compete in judo at the Olympic Games, this event was the final opportunity for athletes to prove themselves.
Team Canada saw two decisive spots determined at these championships: the -57kg and -100kg categories. Deguchi (-57kg) and Shady El Nahas (-100kg) both took home silver medals for Canada, thereby securing their quota spots for the Olympics.
Germany’s Anna-Maria Wagner also made a statement in the -78kg category by becoming world champion for the second time, solidifying her place on the German Olympic team in the process.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic bronze medallist silenced any doubts about her selection and set the stage for what to expect at the upcoming Olympic Games.
In the midst of unexpected results and upsets, some performances at the 2024 World Judo Championships were very much anticipated. Among them were the victories by Azerbaijan's top judokas, who lived up to their top seed spots.
In the -73kg category, world number one Hidayat Heydarov arrived at the Abu Dhabi World Championships 2024 in the best form of his life. Recently crowned European champion for the fourth time and already boasting three world bronze medals, Heydarov was determined to reach his first world final. In a thrilling match, Heydarov secured an epic score in the last ten seconds to clinch the gold medal, becoming only the second world judo champion in Azerbaijan’s history.
Just a few days later, Zelym Kotsoiev, world number one in the -100kg category, further solidified Azerbaijan’s historical success, adding another world title to his nation's tally.
As the dust settles, the judo community now turns its attention to the biggest stage of all: the Olympic Games. With the final major qualification points decided, athletes will prepare for the next time they will meet: to compete for the ultimate honour in Paris.
Will the French mixed team get their revenge? Will the newcomers will rise to the occasion once more? Or will the established stars use these experiences to come back stronger?
Anticipation builds. Stay tuned to discover who will make history next at the Olympic Games in Paris.
Judo will take place from 27 July to 3 August in the Champ du Mars Arena.
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