Alkass Digital
Russia’s Arman Adamian yesterday delivered commanding performance against Lukas Krpalek of the Czech Republic to clinch the gold in the men’s -100kg contest at the World Judo Championships – Doha 2023.
Adamian, 26, was competing an neutral flag following the game’s governing body International Judo Federation’s (IJF) decision to ban Russian and Belarusian judokas from using their national flags since last year when Russia invaded Ukraine.
With a packed crowd cheering the judokas at the Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Arena, Adamian proved too strong for his Czech rival to seal his world title victory which he only secured in extra time.
“I feel very good, I can’t wait to speak to my family on the phone to celebrate with them,” Adamian said, speaking in Russian through a translator. The Russian anthem was not played yesterday and replaced by official IJF music to complete the medal giving ceremony.
When asked about his emotions on winning the goal, standing on the podium, Adamian added with a smile: “I just enjoyed my victory and listened to the IJF anthem.”
The IJF has allowed Russian and Belarusian judokas to take part in these championships as neutral competitors, having previously banned them after the invasion of Ukraine.
That decision followed a recommendation from the International Olympic Committee. Eight Russians were banned from the tournament but the IJF insisted that none were athletes. The judokas taking part are not allowed to have Russian colours on their outfits, instead they bear the letters “AIN” on the back to signify “Individual Neutral Athletes”.
Other competitors display the letters of their country. Russian President Vladimir Putin was honorary president and international ambassador of the IJF from 2008 until he was suspended from the post in 2022.
In September 2022, judo was one of the last sports to exclude Russians and Belarusians from its competitions. Also yesterday, Inbar Lanir defeated Audrey Tcheumeo in the final of the women’s -78kg. In today’s competitions, the judokas will contest for top honours in the men’s + 100kg and womnen’s + 78 finals that start at 6:00pm. The May 7-14 world championships end tomorrow with competitions in mixed team contests.