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Haruki UEMURA President All Japan Judo Federation

World Judo Championships 2010 Tokyo is going to be held from 9th to 13th September at Yoyogi National Gymnasium. On behalf of Japan as a host country, I would like to welcome all competitors, officials and Judo supporters from all over the world.

Starting from this event, two competitors per country can be entered to each weight category in the IJF World Championships. We are expecting more than 700 competitors who will play exciting matches at Yoyogi National Gymnasium.
We will make the utmost efforts for better organization and great success of the event.

Judo was established by Prof. Jigoro KANO in 1882, in Shitaya, Tokyo. After the 1st World Judo Championships in 1956 at Kuramae Kokugikan (Tokyo) and the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964 in which Judo became an official Olympic event, Judo has spread throughout the world. Nowadays, Judo is practiced and played in 199 countries/areas in the world.

Judo requires a spirit which values excellent manner and respective attitude in the competition, and the ultimate goal of practicing Judo is to have a spirit which aims for perfecting oneself and contributing to the society. This principle has been appreciated around the world, and Judo has spread immensely as a good mental and physical education. As of 1st January 2010, IJF has adopted the New Refereeing Rule for the purpose of gripping correctly with a better position of one's body in the game. ｡｡It was a positive step to achieve truly authentic Judo.

It just so happens that this year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Prof. Jigoro KANO.
We are honored to hold this top event of the world for the first time in Tokyo in 52 years since the 2nd World Judo Championships in 1958. We will be well-prepared and look forward to welcoming you all in Tokyo in September.