Paralympic Judo

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Paralympic Judo
Paralympic Judo
Paralympic Judo
Paralympic Judo
Paralympic Judo
 

© London 2012

One of the more complicated sports to follow for the uninitiated, Paralympic Judo hits the ExCeL Centre this summer to wow fans with 'ippons', 'waza-aris' and 'yukos'.

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What is Paralympic Judo?

 

Developed from Jujitsu and with its origins in nineteenth-century Japan, Judo is a pretty complicated sport for those not in the know. Basically, the aim is to score an "ippon" over your opponent - the one point which automatically wins a match. This can be obtained with a controlled throw, a mat hold of sufficient duration or an enforced submission. Alternatively, matches can be won with two half-points, or "waza-ari". If the games are tied after five minutes, then the contest enters a golden score period where even the lowest form of scoring, a "yuko", is enough to settle the bout. It's a one-on-one tactical and intricate sport in which opponents, dressed in pyjama-style outfits tied at the waist by a belt, grapple in both attack and defence. There are varied weight divisions, and three categories of visual impairment.

 
 
 

Who won Paralympic judo gold in Beijing in 2008?

 

China picked up four gold medals in Beijing, topping the medal table in the process. Their seven medals in total kept them ahead of the chasing pack that included Russia (one gold, five bronzes) and Brazil (one gold, two silvers and two bronzes). The individual results were:

Men's
Extra-lightweight: Mouloud Noura (Algeria)
Half-lightweight: Sidali Lamri (Algeria)
Lightweight: Eduardo Avila (Mexico)
Half-middleweight: Isao Cruz (Cuba)
Middleweight: Oleg Kretsul (Russia)
Half-heavyweight: Antonio Tenorio Silva (Brazil)
Heavyweight: IIham Zakiyev (Azerbaijan)

Women's
48kg: Guo Hauping (China)
52kg: Cui Na (China)
57kg: Wang Lijing (China)
63kg: Naomi Soazo (Venezuela)
70kg: Maria del Carmen Herrera (Spain)
+70kg: Yuan Yanping (China)

 
 
 

Do ParalympicsGB have a chance of winning any judo medals?

 

Great Britain won only one medal in Beijing - Sam Ingram’s bronze in the middleweight division. Since 2008, British Judo has progressed with 2010 World Championships champion Ben Quilter the leading light. Quilter became Britain's first judoka with a visual impairment to be crowned World Champion for 12 years. He will aim to win a medal in front of his home crowd in London and, along with Beijing medallist Sam Ingram and his brother Joe, represents Great Britain’s best hope of a success.

 
 
 

Where will the Paralympic judo take place?

 

The London 2012 Judo programme of events takes place at the ExCeL exhibition centre. The ExCeL is the busiest venue outside of the Olympic Park during the Paralympics and they expect busy crowds for every event. For nearby hotels, click here. Or to plan your visit and see where all the sporting action is taking place have a look at our map of London Paralympic Venues.

 
 
 

When is the Paralympic Judo?

 

The Judo programme lasts for only three days, beginning on Thursday 30th August and ending on Saturday 1st September. There will be medal events on every day. See our Paralympics Day-by-Day Guide for the full schedule of events.

 
 
 
 

How do I get to the Paralympic judo at ExCeL?

 

The ExCeL Centre is located just south of the main Olympic Park, north of the River Thames and beside the Royal Victoria Dock. The most used venue outside of the Park, the ExCeL opened its doors in 2000 and is one of Europe's largest exhibition spaces. DLR stations Custom House and Prince Regent both service the ExCeL Centre and you can also access it via the brand new Emirates Air Line cable car that carries passengers across the Thames between Royal Victoria Docks and the Greenwich Peninsula.

 
 
 

How do I get tickets to the Paralympic Judo?

 

Tickets can be purchased from www.tickets.london2012.com. More than 2.1 million of the 2.5 million available tickets have already been sold - organisers are claiming this could be the first Paralympics to sell out in the 52 year history of the Games. Twitter users could start following @2012TicketAlert, an unofficial feed set up during the Olympics which runs a check on the official site every three minutes and tweets every time a ticket becomes available.

 
 
 

What are the disability divisions for Paralympic judo?

 

Athletes with a visual impairment will compete in the Paralympic Judo. Each class is ‘open’ with players from B1, B2 and B3 classes competing against each other in the same grouping in each weight category. If an athlete has a red circle on their kit, it indicates that they have a B1 level of visual impairment. A blue circle indicates that the athlete is deaf as well as having a visual impairment. In Judo the degree of visual impairment does not affect athletic performance because each match starts with the judoka taking grip of their opponent.

 
 
 

When did judo first appear in the Paralympics?

 

Men's judo first appeared in Seoul in 1988, with the women’s competitions making its debut in Athens in 2004. The position at the top of the medal table has been shared by Japan, the USA, Germany and China - will 2012 see a new country come to the fore?

 
 
 

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