Judo to allow Russian athletes to compete at international events under national flag again
The country, which has effectively been shut out of world sport since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022, describes decision as ‘historic’
Russian athletes are free to compete “under their national flag”, the International Judo Federation (IJF) said on Thursday, lifting the neutral status that had been imposed following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“The IJF Executive Committee has therefore voted to permit Russian athletes to compete under their national flag once again, with anthem and insignia in place, beginning with the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Slam,” the IJF said.
The Russian federation reacted with delight to the “historic decision”, with judo being close to the heart of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is a black belt in the sport.
“Judo is one of Russia’s favourite sports, around half a million citizens regularly participate in it,” Mikhail Degtyarev, Russia’s Minister of Sport, said in a statement published on Telegram.
“It is important to our country; judo is a presidential sport.”
The head of the national federation was pleased that they had been reinstated.