During the opening ceremony, Mr Sezer Huysuz, Turkish Judo Federation president, declared, "Distinguished guests, dear IBSA president, dear friends, welcome to Antalya. We just finished the three days of the grand slam and we have now the IBSA Grand Prix Antalya 2024. This is a valuable event for us all. It is amazing to be here with you. We are proud to be part of this celebration of sport. I wish you all the best on your way to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games."
Mr Ilgar Rahimov, President of the International Blind Sports Federation, said, "Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, I am glad to welcome you here in Antalya. Thank you to the Turkish Judo Federation for the excellent organisation of this event. There are fewer than four months before the opening of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and Antalya is one of the two remaining competitions. That's why today's results are crucial. I wish success to all the participants. I know that you’ve been training for this long and hard. There is just a little time left before the Games. Show your strength and may the strongest win."
It was then time for the final block of the seven categories in action today: J1 -60kg, J1 -48kg, J1 -73kg, J2 -48kg, J2 -60kg, J2 -57kg and J2 -73kg.
Marko Spittka is the sport director of Uzbek Judo. He was present during the final block today in Antalya, "Usually we don't come to the IBSA events because we don't have time. After the WJT events, we immediately leave, but here we have the training camp and we are staying in the same hotel as the para-judo athletes. I have also many friends who are involved with IBSA Judo so I really wanted to come and watch.
It's really impressive. I never saw an IBSA event and I'm happy I could come this time. I like the interaction between the judoka and the referee. The referees have to learn a totally new job. This is really cool. I can see that the power involveds huge. With the athletes having to grip, having kumi-kata at the beginning, it creates totally new situations. I know that the para-judo competitors work specifically on this aspect. It's very interesting.
I do love also that the IJF is helping para-judo. This is important, we are the same family. Really, I love what I saw today."