ABU DHABI, November 27. /TASS/. The International Judo Federation (IJF) has reinstated the right of Russian athletes to compete under their national flag at international tournaments starting on November 28, the IJF press service stated.
"The International Judo Federation (IJF) has navigated a period of significant geopolitical pressure with measured responsibility, ensuring the continued unity of the judo family and the safety and fairness of competition for all athletes of all nations," the statement reads.
The world’s governing body of judo made the same decision earlier in the year in regard to judokas from Belarus allowing them to compete internationally under their national flag and to the tune of their country’s anthem beginning from June 1, 2025.
"Following recent developments, including the reinstatement of full national representation for Belarusian athletes, the IJF considers it is now appropriate to allow the participation of Russian athletes under equal conditions," the statement continued. "Historically, Russia has been a leading nation in world judo, and their full return is expected to enrich competition at all levels while upholding the IJF’s principles of fairness, inclusivity, and respect."
According to the world’s judo federation: "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."
"This decision reaffirms the IJF’s role as a truly global federation and reinforces its commitment to fair, transparent, and values-driven governance. The sport of judo always promotes friendship, respect, solidarity, and peace," the statement added.
As soon as the decision was made and the official statement was published, the International Judo Federation returned the national flag of Russia back on its official website.
The 2025 Judo Grand Slam tournament will be held at the Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates on November 28-30 as part of the IJF World Tour and will see the participation of 19 Russian judokas competing in various weight categories.
Step-by-step sanctions against Russian judokas
On February 28, 2022, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued recommendations to international sports federations to prohibit athletes from Russia and Belarus from participating in international tournaments, citing Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine as the reason.
In September 2022, the IJF Executive Committee barred Russian and Belarusian judokas from all international competitions.
In late March, 2023, the IOC recommended international sports federations to allow individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in international sports tournaments, but only under specific conditions.
In April 2023, the IJF Executive Committee decided to allow Russian and Belarusian judokas to compete internationally in the federation-sponsored tournaments as individual neutral athletes under the IJF flag.
Following today’s decision, the IJF became the first Olympic sports federation to allow Russian athletes to participate in international tournaments under the national flag and to the tune of the country’s anthem.