The judo family returned to Israel for their biggest event to date, the World Judo Masters!
And the locals loved it!
IJF President Marius Vizer opened the historic event together with Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion and Moshe Ponti, President of the Israel Judo Association.
They watched young star Shirine Boukli win her biggest title yet using a clever sacrificial technique before taking the time to take a selfie with local judo fans and give them a memory they’ll never forget.
The president of the IJF, Marius Vizer, awarded her the gold medal
In the -60 kg category, Korean Lee Harim competed against world medalist Nagayama and ended up at the top of the podium.
Meanwhile, Olympic champion in the under 48 class, Krasniqi from Kosovo, today defeated Olympic champion and world champion Chelsie Giles in the under 52 kg category.
She won the win with a lightning-fast O-uchi-gari and thus secured an important fourth championship title.
IJF Vice President Laszlo Toth awarded the medals.
The home team’s hopes for gold rested on the strong shoulders of Baruch Shmailov today, and throughout the day he showed off his usual explosive judo using some absolutely tremendous techniques.
He faced the French surprise package Bouba in the final, but the home fans saw no other option but gold for Israel, and the Pais Arena Jerusalem cheered for their hero when he became the -66kg world champion.
Incredible scenes in which Baruch Shmailov, the hero they all came here for, delivered!
The mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, awarded Shmailov and Israel their gold medal.
Canadian fan fan Christa Deguchi ended the year on a high note and used some incredible sacrifice techniques! The 2019 world champion ended 2022 as world champion in the -57 kg class.
Vice President of IJF Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko awarded the medals.
To add to the home success of a gold medal, both the women’s and the rest of the men’s teams offered local fans plenty to cheer about throughout the day.
The Grand Slam in Tel Aviv has always been an incredible stop on the world tour, and the Masters has reached new heights.