Judo

The Princess of Japan, Kako, visited the historic Panellinios judo academy in Athens on Tuesday afternoon and met with young Greek judo athletes. 

Kako is on a five-day official trip to Greece, part of the "Year of Culture and Tourism between Greece and Japan."

Judoka Andreja Leški won silver for Slovenia at the World Championships in Doha on 10 May, having to concede to multiple world and Olympic champion Clarisse Agbegnenou of France in the final yet again.

Competing in the under 63kg category, Leški had also won silver at the 2021 World Championships in Budapest after being defeated by Agbegnenou in the final.

It's practiced by tens of millions around the world but there's no doubt that judo's spiritual home is Japan, where the martial art was created and made its Olympic debut.

It will be among the sports most closely watched by home fans at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Games, and is so deeply embedded in Japanese society it even has its own branch of medicine.

Budapest – Slovenian judoka Andreja Leški won the silver medal in the 63kg category at the Judo World Championship on Wednesday, a career highlight for the 24-year-old.

The Slovenian held her own against four-time world champion Clarisse Agbegnenou in the grand final, until the French competitor scored a waza-ari one minute before the end, before ending the duel with a final pinning.

Lisbon – Slovenian judoka Tina Trstenjak won gold at the European Judo Championships 2021 in the women’s 63 kg event in Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday. She won against Russia’s Daria Davydova. Fellow Slovenian judoka Andreja Leški got a bronze in the same category earlier.

Kagami biraki 鏡 開 き is based on Japanese tradition. It is a ritual in JCG to reflect on the past year's milestones and to renew their dedication to judo principles and values, such as knowledge, courage, perseverance, kindness, friendship, respect and social responsibility.

A Turkish athlete won the bronze medal at the 2018 World Judo Championships in Azerbaijan's capital Baku on Setp. 23.

This is the fifth medal at European judo championships for Trstenjak, who is also the reigning Olympic and world champion in the category.

In the gold medal match, the 26-year-old from Celje defeated Margaux Pinot of France after four and a half minutes of extended time.

UFC star Ronda Rousey is back in the gym, over three months since she suffered her second career loss in the franchise. Instead of training, however, she’s teaching, and it appears on Wednesday that her 11-year-old judo student temporarily became the teacher.

Romanian Andreea Chitu qualified on Tuesday in the semifinals of the women's 52 kg category at the World Judo Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Chitu will fight Turkmenistan's Gulbadam Babamuratova for a place in the final; the other semifinal will see Japanese judoka Misato Nakamura take on Brazil's Erika Miranda.