Judo at the Summer Olympics

Judo at the Summer Olympics
Judo at the Summer Olympics
IOC Code	JUD
Governing body	IJF
Events	15 (men: 7; women: 7; mixed: 1)
Summer Olympics
	1896; 1900; 1904; 1908; 1912; 1920; 1924; 1928; 1932; 1936; 1948; 1952; 1956; 1960; 1964; 1968; 1972; 1976; 1980; 1984; 1988; 1992; 1996; 2000; 2004; 2008; 2012; 2016; 2020; 2024; 2028;
	Medalists;

Judo was first included in the Summer Olympic Games at the 1964 Games in Tokyo, Japan.^[1] After not being included in 1968,^[2] judo has been an Olympic sport in each Olympiad since then. Only male judoka participated until the 1988 Summer Olympics, when women's judo was organized as a demonstration sport. Women judoka were first awarded medals at the 1992 Summer Olympics.^[3]

Summary

Games	Year	Events	Best Nation
18	1964	4	Japan (1)
19
20	1972	6	Japan (2)
21	1976	6	Japan (3)
22	1980	8	Soviet Union (1)
23	1984	8	Japan (4)
24	1988	7 + 7	South Korea (1)
25	1992	14	Japan (5)
26	1996	14	Japan (6)
27	2000	14	Japan (7)
28	2004	14	Japan (8)
29	2008	14	Japan (9)
30	2012	14	Russia (1)
31	2016	14	Japan (10)
32	2020	15	Japan (11)
33	2024	15	Japan (12)

Note: Women's judo made its first appearance at the 1988 Olympic Games, as a demonstration sport. Women's Judo became an official part of the Olympic games from the 1992 Barcelona games and has been an integral part of the games since.

Competition format

Judoka compete in weight classes. Each country may qualify a maximum of one athlete per weight class.^[4] Gold and silver medals are awarded based on a single elimination bracket. Two bronze medals are awarded in each weight class; quarter-finalists losers fight against each other in the same half of bracket. Losers finish in seventh place, winners advance to the bronze medal contest against losing semifinalist of the opposite half of the bracket. Winners of these contests receive bronze medal and losers finish in fifth place.

Weight classes

There have been between 4 and 8 Olympic weight classes over the years (currently 7), and the definition of each class has changed several times, as shown in the following table.

Men

1964	1972–1976	1980–1984	1988–1996	2000–2024 ^[5]
Open category no weight limits
Heavyweight +80 kg	Heavyweight +93 kg	Heavyweight +95 kg		Heavyweight +100 kg
		Heavyweight +95 kg		Half Heavyweight 90–100 kg
		Half Heavyweight 86–95 kg
	Half Heavyweight ^[6] 80–93 kg
				Middleweight 81–90 kg
		Middleweight 78–86 kg		Middleweight 81–90 kg
				Half Middleweight 73–81 kg
Middleweight 68–80 kg	Middleweight 70–80 kg
		Half Middleweight 71–78 kg
		Half Middleweight 71–78 kg		Lightweight 66–73 kg
		Lightweight 65–71 kg
	Half Middleweight ^[7] 63–70 kg
Lightweight -68 kg
				Half Lightweight 60–66 kg
		Half Lightweight 60–65 kg
	Lightweight -63 kg	Half Lightweight 60–65 kg
	Lightweight -63 kg	Extra Lightweight -60 kg
4	6	8	7	7

Women

1992–1996	2000–2024 ^[5]
Heavyweight +72 kg	Heavyweight +78 kg
Heavyweight +72 kg	Half Heavyweight 70–78 kg
Half Heavyweight 66–72 kg	Half Heavyweight 70–78 kg
Half Heavyweight 66–72 kg	Middleweight 63–70 kg
Middleweight 61–66 kg	Middleweight 63–70 kg
Middleweight 61–66 kg	Half Middleweight 57–63 kg
Half Middleweight 56–61 kg	Half Middleweight 57–63 kg
Half Middleweight 56–61 kg	Lightweight 52–57 kg
Lightweight 52–56 kg	Lightweight 52–57 kg
Half Lightweight 48–52 kg
Extra Lightweight -48 kg
7	7

Mixed team event

The mixed team event first made an appearance at the 2020 Olympic Games. The event includes teams of six athletes from different weight categories, including three men (-73 kg, -90 kg and +90 kg) and three women (-57 kg, -70 kg and +70 kg). Nation competes against nation, with rounds composed of six individual bouts. The winner of each bout will be awarded one point and the minimum score a team will need to progress to the next round will be 4:2.^[8] If the score is 3:3, there will be an extra bout, with the category selected by draw.

Medal table

Judoka from 56 nations have won medals, representing all 5 continents.^[9]^[10]

Updated as of 2024 Summer Olympics


Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Japan (JPN)	51	23	30	104
2	France (FRA)	18	15	34	67
3	South Korea (KOR)	11	19	21	51
4	China (CHN)	8	3	12	23
5	Cuba (CUB)	6	15	16	37
6	Georgia (GEO)	5	7	3	15
7	Soviet Union (URS)	5	5	13	23
8	Brazil (BRA)	5	4	19	28
9	Italy (ITA)	5	4	9	18
10	Russia (RUS)	5	4	7	16
11	Netherlands (NED)	4	2	18	24
12	Germany (GER)	3	4	15	22
13	Poland (POL)	3	3	2	8
14	Azerbaijan (AZE)	3	2	2	7
15	Slovenia (SLO)	3	1	3	7
15	Spain (ESP)	3	1	3	7
17	Kosovo (KOS)	3	1	1	5
18	United States (USA)	2	4	8	14
19	Austria (AUT)	2	3	3	8
20	North Korea (PRK)	2	2	4	8
21	Belgium (BEL)	2	1	11	14
22	Unified Team (EUN)	2	0	2	4
23	Czech Republic (CZE)	2	0	0	2
24	Mongolia (MGL)	1	5	6	12
25	West Germany (FRG)	1	4	3	8
26	Hungary (HUN)	1	3	6	10
27	Uzbekistan (UZB)	1	2	7	10
28	East Germany (GDR)	1	2	6	9
29	Canada (CAN)	1	2	5	8
30	Kazakhstan (KAZ)	1	2	3	6
30	Romania (ROU)	1	2	3	6
32	Switzerland (SUI)	1	1	2	4
33	Greece (GRE)	1	0	2	3
34	Argentina (ARG)	1	0	1	2
	Belarus (BLR)	1	0	1	2
	Turkey (TUR)	1	0	1	2
37	Croatia (CRO)	1	0	0	1
38	Great Britain (GBR)	0	8	12	20
39	Israel (ISR)	0	3	6	9
40	Ukraine (UKR)	0	1	3	4
41	Bulgaria (BUL)	0	1	2	3
42	Algeria (ALG)	0	1	1	2
	Colombia (COL)	0	1	1	2
	Egypt (EGY)	0	1	1	2
	United Team of Germany (EUA)	0	1	1	2
46	Chinese Taipei (TPE)	0	1	0	1
	Mexico (MEX)	0	1	0	1
	Slovakia (SVK)	0	1	0	1
49	Portugal (POR)	0	0	4	4
50	Estonia (EST)	0	0	3	3
	ROC (ROC)	0	0	3	3
	Tajikistan (TJK)	0	0	3	3
53	Australia (AUS)	0	0	2	2
	Moldova (MDA)	0	0	2	2
	Yugoslavia (YUG)	0	0	2	2
56	Czechoslovakia (TCH)	0	0	1	1
	Iceland (ISL)	0	0	1	1
	Kyrgyzstan (KGZ)	0	0	1	1
	Latvia (LAT)	0	0	1	1
	Sweden (SWE)	0	0	1	1
	United Arab Emirates (UAE)	0	0	1	1
Totals (61 entries)		167	166	334	667

Number of judoka by nation

Nation	96	00	04	08	12	20	24	28	32	36	48	52	56	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	00	04	08	12	16	20	24	Years
Afghanistan (AFG)																									1		1	1			3
Albania (ALB)																										1	1		1		3
Algeria (ALG)																			3		5	3	6	7	11	10	2	5	2	3	11
American Samoa (ASA)																										1	1	1			3
Andorra (AND)																						1	1		1	1		1			5
Angola (ANG)																					7	4			1		1	1	1	1	7
Argentina (ARG)															3		1	2	4	4	3	9	8	9	9	9	4	2	2	1	15
Armenia (ARM)																							1	1	1	2	2	1	1		7
Aruba (ARU)																								1		1	1	1			4
Australia (AUS)															4		4	3	3	3	3	2	12	14	12	13	5	7	3	3	15
Austria (AUT)															3		6	4	5	4	3	6	5	3	2	3	3	5	6	6	15
Azerbaijan (AZE)																							2	4	3	6	8	6	8	9	8
Bahrain (BRN)																														1	1
Barbados (BAR)																					1		1	1	1		1				5
Belarus (BLR)																							4	5	7	4	2	2	3		7
Belgium (BEL)																	4	2	1	2	4	9	7	9	3	3	6	5	4	4	14
Belize (BIZ)																											1	1			2
Benin (BEN)																					1						1	1	1	1	5
Bhutan (BHU)																													1		1
Bolivia (BOL)																				1	1	2			1			1			5
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH)																						1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	9
Botswana (BOT)																												1			1
Brazil (BRA)															1		2	3	7	7	3	14	12	12	12	13	14	14	13	13	15
Bulgaria (BUL)																		4	4		2	5	1	2	2		1	2	3	2	11
Burkina Faso (BUR)																						1			1	1	1	1	1		6
Burundi (BDI)																											1	1		1	3
Cambodia (CAM)																											1				1
Cameroon (CMR)																			5	6			1	3	4	1	1	1	2	1	10
Canada (CAN)															1		5	5		8	3	12	11	6	6	5	8	7	6	7	14
Cape Verde (CPV)																											1		1	1	3
Central African Republic (CAF)																						3			1					1	3
Chad (CHA)																						2					1		1		3
Chile (CHI)																				1				1	1	1	1	1	1	2	8
China (CHN)																				5	2	10	11	11	9	14	8	8	6	6	11
Chinese Taipei (TPE)																				4	3	2	10	6	2	2	1	2	3	3	11
Colombia (COL)																					1				3	2	2	2	1	1	7
Comoros (COM)																													1		1
Republic of the Congo (CGO)																				3				1	1			1			4
Costa Rica (CRC)															2		1		3	4	1		2		1		1	1	1	1	11
Croatia (CRO)																											2	1	3	3	4
Cuba (CUB)																	3	3	6			12	12	14	12	14	9	9	6	4	12
Cyprus (CYP)																			5	2	2	2			1					1	6
Czech Republic (CZE)																							4	3	1	2	3	3	2	3	8
Czechoslovakia (TCH)																	1	2	5		2	5									5
Democratic Republic of the Congo (COD)																						6				1	1	1	1	1	6
Denmark (DEN)																				1	1								1	1	4
Djibouti (DJI)																						2					1	1	1	1	5
Dominican Republic (DOM)																	2			2	1	4	3	5	5	3	1	1	1	1	12
East Germany (GDR)																	5	1	6		2										4
Ecuador (ECU)																		1	2	1		1		2	2	3	1	3	3	1	11
Egypt (EGY)																				6	1	3	2	3	6	4	5	5	3	2	11
El Salvador (ESA)																				2	1	1	2	1		1	1	1		1	9
Equatorial Guinea (GEQ)																										1					1
Estonia (EST)																						1	1	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	9
Fiji (FIJ)																				2		4	1	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	10
Finland (FIN)																	1	2	3	3		7	1	1	1	2	3	1		2	12
France (FRA)															4		5	1	7	8	3	14	14	14	13	13	14	14	13	14	15
Gabon (GAB)																						2	1	2	1	1	1	2	1	1	9
The Gambia (GAM)																												1	1	1	3
Georgia (GEO)																							6	6	7	7	7	8	9	10	8
Germany (GER)															4							13	13	11	12	11	11	13	13	10	10
Ghana (GHA)																											1	1	1		3
Great Britain (GBR)															4		5	3	8	8	3	14	13	9	8	7	14	7	6	5	15
Greece (GRE)																						2	1		14	3	2	2	2	2	8
Guam (GUM)																					1	2				1	1		1	1	6
Guatemala (GUA)																							2	1			1	1	1	1	6
Guinea (GUI)																			3	1		3		1	1		1	1		2	8
Guinea-Bissau (GBS)																												1	1	1	3
Guyana (GUY)																		1									1				2
Haiti (HAI)																						5	2	1	2	2	1	1	1	1	9
Honduras (HON)																				1			3		1		1	1	1		6
Hong Kong (HKG)																	1			4	3	4	1				1			1	7
Hungary (HUN)																	5	1	8		3	12	7	6	2	6	8	8	7	7	13
Iceland (ISL)																			2	2		3	1			1	1	1			7
Independent Olympic Athletes (IOA)																						4					1				2
India (IND)																						5	2	1	1	2	1	1	1	1	9
Indonesia (INA)																						4	1	2	2		1			1	6
Iran (IRI)																							1	3	6	6	2	2			6
Iraq (IRQ)																									1			1			2
Ireland (IRL)															1		5		2	1	1	2	2				1		2		9
Israel (ISR)																		1		2		4	2	3	5	3	5	7	12	12	11
Italy (ITA)															2		3	2	1	5	2	9	9	9	9	8	9	6	8	13	15
Ivory Coast (CIV)																			2			2	2	3			1	1	1	1	8
Jamaica (JAM)																													1	1	2
Japan (JPN)															4		5	2		8	3	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14
Jordan (JOR)																												1	1		2
Kazakhstan (KAZ)																							8	8	8	10	9	6	6	8	8
Kenya (KEN)																					2	3						1		1	4
Kiribati (KIR)																													1	1	2
Kosovo (KOS)																												2	5	5	3
Kuwait (KUW)																			5	5	2	2	2		1	1					7
Kyrgyzstan (KGZ)																							2	1	1	2	2	2	1	2	8
Laos (LAO)																												1	1		2
Latvia (LAT)																						2		1	1	2	3	2	1		7
Lebanon (LIB)																	2		2	3	2	4				1	1	1	1	1	10
Liberia (LBR)																											1				1
Libya (LBA)																						2			1	1	1	1	1		6
Liechtenstein (LIE)																	2	3		2	2	2	1	1					1		8
Lithuania (LTU)																						1	1	1	1	1	2	1	1		8
Luxembourg (LUX)																						1	1			1	1				4
North Macedonia (MKD)																												1			1
Madagascar (MAD)																	4		2			2		1	1	1	1	1	1	1	10
Malaysia (MAS)															1																1
Mali (MLI)																	2		3	1	2	2		1	1		1	1	1		10
Malta (MLT)																					2	2		1	1	1					5
Mauritius (MRI)																							3	1				1	1	1	5
Mexico (MEX)															3		3	1	2	4	2	1	2	1	3	2	2	2	1	2	15
Moldova (MDA)																							2	4	1	1	2	1	2	3	30
Monaco (MON)																				1	1		1			1	1	1	1		7
Mongolia (MGL)																	5	2	8		3	10	3	8	8	10	9	13	12	10	13
Montenegro (MNE)																										1	1	1	1		4
Morocco (MAR)																	3	1		3	2		3	2	2	4	3	3	2	2	12
Mozambique (MOZ)																										1		1	1	1	4
Myanmar (MYA)																						1					1	1			3
Nauru (NRU)																											1	1			2
Nepal (NEP)																					2					1		1	1	1	5
Netherlands (NED)															4		3		2	3	1	10	10	10	7	10	9	11	10	10	14
Netherlands Antilles (AHO)																		2					1								2
New Zealand (NZL)																	1			3	1	4	2	3	1		1	1		2	10
Nicaragua (NCA)																	1	1					2						1		4
Niger (NIG)																									1		1	1	1		4
Nigeria (NGR)																					1	2	1	1	2	1					6
North Korea (PRK)																	2	1	4			3	1	5	6	7	1	3		1	11
North Macedonia (MKD)																													1		1
North Yemen (YAR)																					2										1
Norway (NOR)																				3		1									2
Pakistan (PAK)																												1	1		2
Palau (PLW)																											1				1
Palestine (PLE)																											1	1	1		3
Panama (PAN)															1									1			1		2	1	5
Papua New Guinea (PNG)																											1	1			2
Paraguay (PAR)																				1	1	1	1				1			1	6
Peru (PER)																				1				1		1	1	1	1	1	7
Philippines (PHI)															4		3				1	2					1	1	1	1	8
Poland (POL)																	5	5	7		3	11	12	4	6	7	6	4	6	4	13
Portugal (POR)															1		2		3		2	8	5	6	4	5	4	6	8	7	13
Puerto Rico (PUR)																	3	1		2	3	4	4	4	3	3	1	2	3	2	13
Qatar (QAT)																												1	1		2
Refugee Olympic Team (EOR)																												2	6		2
Republic of China (ROC)															4		4														2
Romania (ROU)																			8	3		6	5	7	4	2	6	4	3	1	11
Russia (RUS)																							13	10	11	13	12	12			6
Rwanda (RWA)																											1				1
Samoa (SAM)																								1			2	1	1	1	5
San Marino (SMR)																			2	2	2	1	1					1	2		7
Saudi Arabia (KSA)																											2	2	1		3
Senegal (SEN)																	5	2	7	6	2	6	2	1	1	4	1	1	1	1	14
Serbia (SRB)																											1	1	5	6	4
Serbia and Montenegro (SCG)																							2		1						2
Seychelles (SEY)																								1	1		1	1	1		5
Sierra Leone (SLE)																													1		1
Singapore (SGP)																						1									1
Slovakia (SVK)																							2	1	2	1	1			1	6
Slovenia (SLO)																						2			5	5	8	5	5	6	7
South Africa (RSA)																							1	1	1	3	1	1	1	1	8
South Korea (KOR)															4		2	1		8	3	14	11	12	13	14	14	12	14	11	14
Soviet Union (URS)															3		5	1	8		3										5
Spain (ESP)																	1	2		6	2	12	9	12	10	6	6	5	7	9	13
Sri Lanka (SRI)																												1	1		2
Sudan (SUD)																						2						1	1		3
Suriname (SUR)																	1			1	1							1			4
Sweden (SWE)																	1	1	4	4	2	6	1	2	1		1	4	4	2	13
Switzerland (SUI)															1				4	2		5	1	4	2	1	2	3	2	3	12
Syria (SYR)																			7						1			1			3
Tajikistan (TJK)																							3			3	2	2	4	6	6
Tanzania (TAN)																												1			1
Thailand (THA)															3		1	1				2	1				1	1	1	1	9
Togo (TOG)																								1		1	1				3
Tonga (TGA)																									1						1
Trinidad and Tobago (TTO)																												1	1		2
Tunisia (TUN)															1					3		1	6	9	4	6	4	4	3	2	11
Turkey (TUR)																				3	3	4	6	3	3	1	2	4	6	8	11
Turkmenistan (TKM)																							2	2	1	2	1	2	1	2	8
Ukraine (UKR)																							3	6	8	9	10	7	7	5	8
Unified Team (EUN)																						13									1
United Arab Emirates (UAE)																										1	1	3	2	6	5
United States (USA)															5		5	2		8	3	13	14	13	12	10	5	6	4	4	14
Uruguay (URU)																						1	2	1			1	1	1	1	7
Uzbekistan (UZB)																							7	6	6	8	7	8	10	12	8
Vanuatu (VAN)																											1	1	1	1	4
Venezuela (VEN)															1			1		1		3	3	9	9	7	2	1	3	1	12
Vietnam (VIE)															3								1				1	1	1	1	6
West Germany (FRG)																	5	2		8	3										4
Yemen (YEM)																						5				1	1	1	1		5
Yugoslavia (YUG)																	4	1	6	5	1			1							6
Zambia (ZAM)																			6			1					1	1	1	1	6
Zimbabwe (ZIM)																			2		1	2									3
Year	96	00	04	08	12	20	24	28	32	36	48	52	56	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	00	04	08	12	16	20	24

References

^ Grant, T.P. "History of Jiu Jitsu: Judo Grows Into An Olympic Sport". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
^ Japan Shocked By IOC, Pacific Stars And Stripes, October 20, 1963, p. 19.
^ "Olympic Judo". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
^ "QUALIFICATION SYSTEM – GAMES OF THE XXXI OLYMPIAD – RIO 2016" (PDF). Intjudo.eu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
^ ^a ^b "Weight classes for 2016 Games" (PDF). Multimedia.olympic.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-08-20. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
^ Called "Light Heavyweight" in official reports for 1972 and 1976 Games.
^ Called "Welterweight" in 1972 Games official report and "Light Middleweight" in 1976 Games official report.
^ "What is the new judo mixed team event?". Tokyo 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-08-02. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
^ "Judo - Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". Archived from the original on 2020-04-17. (Note: Source counts two medals won by EUA for GER.)
^ "Olympic Analytics - Medals by Countries". olympanalyt.com. Retrieved 2022-01-31.

[1] Grant, T.P. "History of Jiu Jitsu: Judo Grows Into An Olympic Sport". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 18 May 2017.

[2] Japan Shocked By IOC, Pacific Stars And Stripes, October 20, 1963, p. 19.

[3] "Olympic Judo". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 September 2024.

[4] "QUALIFICATION SYSTEM – GAMES OF THE XXXI OLYMPIAD – RIO 2016" (PDF). Intjudo.eu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2016-08-08.

[Rio-5] "Weight classes for 2016 Games" (PDF). Multimedia.olympic.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-08-20. Retrieved 2016-08-08.

[halfheavy-6] Called "Light Heavyweight" in official reports for 1972 and 1976 Games.

[halfmiddle-7] Called "Welterweight" in 1972 Games official report and "Light Middleweight" in 1976 Games official report.

[8] "What is the new judo mixed team event?". Tokyo 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-08-02. Retrieved 2021-08-02.

[9] "Judo - Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". Archived from the original on 2020-04-17. (Note: Source counts two medals won by EUA for GER.)

[10] "Olympic Analytics - Medals by Countries". olympanalyt.com. Retrieved 2022-01-31.

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