It's a Japanese word that can mean many things. For what we are dealing with, it means beginning, the beginning of a fight that goes far beyond what many people think.

READ our article about the relaunch of the judo season.

Hajime is the beginning of everything in a sport that is not a sport and, for us the profane, it is time to discover that behind this sport, inside and all around there is something else that breathes, moves, feeds, in a word, there is life.

Judo is a whole, more balanced than a philosophical current, more complete than an ideology. Judo is the fight between good and evil, it is the perfect balance between theory and reality. Everything begins and ends on the mat, this tatami that serves as a school of life to everyone who agrees to live according to a code.

Judo is the sum of all the qualities required to triumph in life, not from a material point of view, nor from a Western or bourgeois sensibility. No, this is a human journey where the person who complies with the rules grows morally at the same speed as his body. A healthy mind in a strong body.

Yes but now, for the body to be strong, it must be trained, hardened, accustomed to pain. This is in the image of life. Of course, the body is nothing, in any case nothing interesting, just a living matter without interest if it is not accompanied by a strong spirit.

Respect for oneself and the others. Have the courage to face the problems, to find the appropriate solutions. Showcase absolute courtesy without hypocrisy as a way of life. Keep your calmness in all circumstances. Make a vow of honesty and never compromise in the face of lies.

It is being humble and never believing yourself to be superior, it is showing the way by the example and never complaining but correcting and learning from your mistakes. It is a code of honor that is practiced at any age, which adapts to all. It is a state of mental rest in the midst of chaos, a weapon of mass destruction against absolute evil. It is s the lifeline against boredom and loneliness.

After comes the challenge, the fight against your equal. It is difficult, it is physical but also mental because all the senses are sharpened. It is spectacular and pretty, it is a poem of purity.

Judo is all of that and even more. The more we discover it, the more we become hooked. It is a creator of smiles, it is the definition of the respect of the difference, the integration and the quiet force, the individual strength in the service of a group.

It is the discipline that expresses the free will without disturbing. It is the supreme freedom, this stage where all are equal without amalgams, without grudges, without borders.This is Judo !

See also
News
Mittersill Remains Number One

08. Jan. 2025 / The show can begin! The largest judo training camp ...

Gender Equality
Sierra Leone: Investing in Women

06. Jan. 2025 / In 2024, the IJF Academy stopped in Sierra Leone for ...

News
Kickstarting the Season

04. Jan. 2025 / To get the new year underway, thousands of judoka around ...

The Olympic Champion Series
The Olympic Champions (51): Djamel Bouras (FRA)

28. Dec. 2024 / Interviewing an Olympic champion is something special ...

News
IJF President's End of the Year 2024 Message

20. Dec. 2024 / IJF President's end of the year message.

News
The Passing of 1964 Olympic Silver Medallist Mr Eric Hänni (SUI)

28. Dec. 2024 / The IJF is moved to hear of the passing of Olympic ...

Judo in Schools
Judo in Schools, Puerto Rico

19. Dec. 2024 / The Puerto Rico Judo Federation has been working hard, ...

Gender Equality
Akyama Hinako, Kodokan Judo Instructor

18. Dec. 2024 / Sanda Corak is the president of the Croation Judo Federation. ...

News
New Rules: What to Remember

17. Dec. 2024 / The important IJF Technical Meeting which has just ...

News
Stipendium Hungaricum Sport Scholarship Programme (Judo) Holders Visit IJF Headquarters

17. Dec. 2024 / The Stipendium Hungaricum Sport Scholarship Programme ...

Technical Seminar 2024
IJF Technical Seminar Live

14. Dec. 2024 / On 13th December 2024, the new refereeing rules were ...

News
The Monteiro Era

14. Dec. 2024 / Medals at milestone events such as the European championships, ...

News
Judo Presents the New Rules

13. Dec. 2024 / With the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and more recently ...

INTERVIEW EXPRESS
Shishime Ai (JPN)

08. Jun. 2018 / The next reigning world champion to be invited to answer ...

News
5 Key Takeaways from judo’s first Tokyo 2020 qualifier

06. Jun. 2018 / Highlights from Hohhot Grand Prix 2018

VIDEO
Judo for the World in Iran

07. Jun. 2018 / In April 2018, the International Judo Federation and ...

Meeting
JUDO: A Beneficial Cause

07. Jun. 2018 / 'Society should believe in sport as a beneficial cause ...