On June 16th 2024 all National Federations were invited to send proposals for the rules of judo. This window closed at the end of September at which point all proposals were combined and presented to the IJF Technical Meeting for evaluation and discussion. The opinion of the media was also requested in order to be able to answer as many questions as possible.
The adaptations that will be made in the coming months to high-level practice were the subject of debate, analysis and discussions following the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam 2024, which has just taken place in the capital of the United Arab Emirates. These discussions took place between the members of the IJF Executive Committee, the most performant national federations and international experts recognised and appreciated for their skills in the fields of refereeing, sport and the organisation of World Judo Tour events.
During the fruitful discussions that took place in Abu Dhabi, the received aspects were freely discussed, having in mind the desire to keep judo's ability to evolve with the times while preserving its core values that make it a resolutely modern and deeply educational activity. The theme was to promote ippon judo and reduce penalties, putting the decision of the contest more in the hands of the athletes' positive performance.
The conclusion of the work will be presented in a seminar before the end of 2024.
On the basis of the orientations proposed by this group of international experts, the seminar and after a last review, the IJF will develop the strategy resulting in an update of the rules which will be put in place for the upcoming Olympic cycle. Everything will be presented officially in January and implemented for the first time on the occasion of the first World Judo Tour event at the Paris Grand Slam 2025.