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Clarisse Agbégnénou takes her sixth world title

Five-time world champion and Olympic champion Clarisse Agbégnénou showed typical top form, Tato Grigalaashvili becomes first Georgian double world champion.

Doha, metropolis and mixture of modernity and history. Qatar wants to preserve traditions and at the same time promote innovation.

Labyrinthine alleys of the souks attract visitors, old and new coexist seamlessly.

Qatar’s ultra-modern sports facilities are a global centre for competitions. Since Sunday, more than 600 fighters from around 100 countries have been competing for a total of 15 world championship titles at the Judo World Championships in Doha. In addition to the fights in the individual competition, the national teams are also competing in the team discipline.

Children are invited to the World Championships to inspire new judoka and cheer on the local athletes.

Five-time world champion and Olympic champion Clarisse Agbégnénou showed herself in typical top form. With armlocks and throws she made her way into the final, the sixth gold as her goal.

Andreja Leski from Slovenia secured a place in a world final for the second time – as she did two years ago. Agbegnenou also played the leading role in her eighth world championship final: she dominated the fight with throws and holds – and thus secured her sixth world title.

“I am really proud to have become a mother again – and to win my sixth world medal today.”

Clarisse Agbégnénou

Ex – World champion Mathias Casse has come to Doha to reclaim his title. He stormed through the preliminary rounds and was already on his way to the final. But the draw gave him the reigning World Champion Tato Grigalaashvili, who would not give up his title so easily.

It was the third consecutive world championship final for the rivals – and one of the most anticipated fights of the competition. Grigalashvili did not let up and regained his title with a waza-ari.

“In 2021 I won the World Masters here and it has become a special city for me. Now I have defended my world title here. The atmosphere here is fantastic and I hope to come back here for more medals in the future.”

Tato Grigalashvili

Judo World Championships in Qatar: For the first time a mixed team of refugees competes
For the first time in history, a complete mixed team of refugee athletes will compete directly against other national teams at a world championship. The International Refugee Team (IRF) consists of equal numbers of three athletes each and comes from Iran, Afghanistan and Syria.

Russian fans expelled from the hall
A group of spectators at the Judo World Championships in Doha was expelled from the hall for wearing Russian military emblems. This was announced by the International Judo Federation (IFJ) on Wednesday. The people concerned had not previously complied with a request to remove their insignia, the IFJ said.

Three people wore the Saint George’s ribbon during the competitions at the Ali Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah Arena in the Qatari capital, the portal Insidethegames reported. “They were spectators and were asked to remove the items, which they did not want to do. Therefore, they were removed from the hall and are not allowed to re-enter it. “

The Saint George’s ribbon is a Russian military insignia that is seen by many Ukrainians as a symbol of Russian aggression and is banned in several European countries.

The International Judo Federation had given athletes from Russia and Belarus the green light to compete in the World Championships on the condition that they compete as neutral individual athletes and pass a background check. On Sunday, eight members of the Russian delegation were excluded, but none of them was a female or male athlete. Ukraine is boycotting the World Championships because of this.

By Frank