Iran Suspended by International Judo Federation
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The International Judo Federation (IJF) banned Iran’s team from upcoming events.
Iran had already accused the IJF of trying to “create problems” with Saeid Mollaei in the 2019 World Judo Championships in Tokyo, Japan.
On October 4, 2019, the Iran Judo Federation sent an official letter of defense along with the supporting documents.
Iran can appeal the IJF ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Iran has been warned the suspension will not be lifted "until the Iran Judo Federation gives strong guarantees and proves that they will respect the IJF Statutes.”
Judo is one of Iran's strongest sports and, although they have never won an Olympic medal, they would expect to be strong contenders at Tokyo 2020.
The IJF had previously claimed any measures taken against Iran would not apply directly to Tokyo 2020 because athletes are technically entered by their National Olympic Committees.
But, as reaching Tokyo 2020 depends almost exclusively on world ranking points earned in IJF events, it will be next to impossible for judoka from Iran to qualify.