The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union from 19 July to 3 August. A total of 5,179 athletes representing 80 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in 203 events in 22 sports. They were the first Games to be staged in a communist nation.
The judo competition at the 1964 Summer Olympics was the first time the sport was included in the Summer Olympic Games. As a result, decades of judo being officially banned as an "imperialist sport" in the Soviet Union ended shortly before the Games started, as Soviet authorities prioritized winning medals over anything else. The medals were awarded in 4 classes, and competition was restricted to men only. The competition was held in the Nippon Budokan, which was built to host the competition.
The Judo competition at the 1984 Summer Olympics continued the seven weight classes first used at the 1980 Games. With the open division, there were eight competitions. Powerhouse Japan returned to the top of the medal count after eight years, having boycotted the Moscow games. Because of the Soviet-led boycott of the Los Angeles games, several traditionally strong judo countries, including Cuba and the Soviet Union, did not participate. The Judo competition was held at California State University, Los Angeles.
The Judo competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics continued the seven weight classes first used at the 1980 Games. The open division was eliminated from the competition. Women's judo made its first appearance at the Olympic Games, as a demonstration sport. Japan failed to claim the top of the medal count for the first time in an Olympics in which they participated, coming in third behind South Korea and Poland.
Libya competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. The country's participation in Sydney marked its sixth appearance at a Summer Olympics since its debut at the 1964 Games. The delegation included three male athletes; marathon runner Adel Edeli, judoka Tarek Ayad and Nizar Mohamed Naeeli in taekwondo. Edeli did not finish his race, while Ayad and Naeeli were both eliminated in the first bouts of their respective tournaments.
David Donald Hubert Roger Douillet is a French politician and retired judoka.
Michael Lee Swain is one of the most successful American judoka. He competed in countless international competitions. He is now the VP of Martial Arts at Dollamur, Sports LP where he develops and sells Martial Arts equipment and continues to be a spokesperson and board member for USA Judo.
The World Judo Championships are the highest level of international judo competition, next to the quadrennial judo events at the Summer Olympic Games. The world championships are held by the International Judo Federation annually, except the calendar years of the Summer Olympics. Qualified judoka compete in their respective categories as representatives of their home countries. Team fixtures have also been held since 1994. The men's championships first took place in 1956, though the format and periodicity of the competition have changed over time. The last edition of the World Judo Championships (2024) was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
An Kum-ae is a North Korean judoka.
Israel has competed at the Olympic Games as a nation since 1952. Its National Olympic Committee was formed in 1933, during the British Mandate of Palestine. Israel has sent a team to each Summer Olympic Games since 1952, and to each Winter Olympic Games since 1994. Israel became a member of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in 1994. At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Israel won seven Olympic medals, the most up until this point, breaking Israel's record for Olympic medals per Olympics.
Dietmar Lorenz was an East German judoka, who competed for SC Dynamo Hoppegarten under the Sportvereinigung Dynamo.
Islam El Shehaby is an Egyptian former judoka.
Aurélio Fernández Miguel is a Brazilian judoka and Olympic champion, and later politician. Among his best sporting achievements are his gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, and a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Thierry Rey is a French judoka, world and olympic champion. He won a gold medal in the extra lightweight (–60 kg) division at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. He is the father of Martin Rey-Chirac, as a result of a relation with Claude Chirac, a daughter of late president Jacques Chirac.
Angelo Parisi is a French judoka and olympic champion. He won a gold medal in the heavyweight division at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. At his Olympic debut in 1972 he represented Great Britain. Parisi holds the 8th dan degree.
Jürg Röthlisberger is a Swiss judoka and olympic champion. He won a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.
Marie Muller is a Luxembourgish judoka.
Or "Ori" Sasson is a retired Israeli Olympic judoka. He won a bronze medal in the +100 kg category at the 2016 Summer Olympics and another one at the 2020 Summer Olympics. He is the second of three Israelis to win two Olympic medals.
The mixed team competition in judo at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo was held on 31 July 2021 at the Nippon Budokan.
Judo competitions at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris took place from 27 July to 3 August at Grand Palais Éphémère in Champ de Mars. The number of judokas competing across fourteen weight categories at these Games has been reduced from 393 in Tokyo 2020 to 372, with an equal distribution between men and women.
