This year, more than ever, we need courtesy, courage, honesty, honour, modesty, respect, self-control and friendship, as the moral code of judo teaches us. The world is going through difficult times, through conflicts that affect the most vulnerable and through a climate crisis that concerns us all.
Friendship, which is at the heart of World Judo Day in 2023, is a fundamental value of understanding between peoples. Beyond all our differences, we must do everything so that our children live in a better world. This is what our judo community works towards every day.
This year, we asked you to 'bring a friend' to join you on the tatami, where the dojo represents a secure place in which we can express ourselves freely. By inviting a friend, you demonstrate that judo is a sport but above all that it represents a way of life that we are ready to share with as many people as possible.
Judo is based on the principle of mutual aid and prosperity (Jita kyoei). This is what we need today!"
Happy World Judo Day!
Marius L. Vizer IJF President