As an official partner of the IJF in general and IJF World Judo Tour in particular, MET Group will have a strong on-site presence at all grand prix, grand slams, World Judo Masters and the world championships. The company will have opportunities to activate the partnership with the IJF in 2023 and 2024. Under the agreement, MET will support the IJF especially in the areas of talent development and youth promotion – areas which are key to the energy company, since its exceptional growth story over the past 16 years has been based primarily on finding the right talents, integrating them with the team, giving them responsibility and continuing to grow together.
Benjamin Lakatos, Chairman & CEO of MET Holding AG, commented, “I am delighted by this agreement. At MET, we see a clear analogy between our company values related to business activities in the international energy markets, and the values of judo. Just as the judo athletes do, we want to be successful in what we do. We have clear goals and fight hard to achieve them. At the same time, we bring along a lot of respect for our competitors and counterparts. Our goals are set very high but we are confident, ambitious and tackle these tasks with great courage. This is why I truly believe that the partnership between MET and the IJF is a perfect match.”
Marius Vizer, President of the International Judo Federation, added, “Signing this agreement with MET marks an important milestone and I anticipate a successful and mutually rewarding co-operation. MET will bring new energy to the IJF and to judo overall, for the benefit of all parties involved, in the true spirit of judo. The association with the IJF represents a commitment to promoting the same values and moral principles that our sport stands for. It is an honour for us to become the link between MET and millions of judo afficionados all over the world, as well as over 200 IJF member national federations."
MET Group
MET Group is an integrated European energy company, headquartered in Switzerland, with activities and assets in natural gas and power markets. MET is present in 13 countries through subsidiaries, 27 national gas markets and 22 international trading hubs. MET has extensive experience in operating green (renewable) and flexible (balancing) energy assets, thus providing the widest possible support to energy transition. In 2021, MET Group’s consolidated sales revenue amounted to EUR 18.1 billion, the volume of traded natural gas was 55 BCM, traded electricity 50+ TWh.
The IJF
The International Judo Federation (IJF) is the world governing body for judo and was founded in 1951. With more than 200 national member federations, five continental unions and an annual World Judo Tour of world-class events, judo is a martial art, an educational tool and is one of the world’s most widely practised sports. The IJF is leading social programmes on the five continents, including, Judo for Children, Judo in Schools, Judo for Peace, Judo for All, based on gender equity and non-discriminatory principles and on a strong moral code promoting physical, mental and social excellence.