To open the draw, Mr Helder Maciel Araújo, President of the Brazilian Confederation of Sports for the Visually Impaired and a member of the IBSA executive board, welcomed those gathered.
“Dear athletes, coaches, and officials, welcome to the IBSA Judo Grand Prix here in São Paulo. On behalf of IBSA Judo, I wish all athletes the very best of luck in the draw and throughout the competition. We look forward to fair, exciting and high level judo.
I would also like to take this moment to share an important update. After many years of dedicated service and commitment to IBSA Judo, Mr János Tardos has decided to resign from his position due to personal matters. We are deeply grateful to him for his outstanding contribution, leadership and tireless work for our sport. I am pleased to announce that Mr Tardos will remain with us as a member of the IBSA Judo Committee in an advisory role, continuing to support our team with his experience and knowledge.
IBSA Judo continues to be supported by a very professional and committed team. While we do not yet have a new chair, Ms Sara Alvares, IBSA Judo Sport Director, is responsible for all IBSA Judo-related activities. Please feel free to contact her for any matters or support. Thank you all and once again good luck to everyone.”
Mr Janos Tardos then responded, “As you could hear, I resigned from my position as chair of IBSA Judo, but I will continue to be part of the judo family. I would like to announce that the IJF has formed a new commission that will deal with the development of disabled judo; it is called the IJF Inclusion Commission. Its goal is to develop judo for all disabled people. The IJF and Mr Marius Vizer, our IJF President, invited me to lead this commission as chair. The new commission can now be found on the IJF website. The leadership of the commission includes representatives from all disability branches.”
Following the speeches, the official draw took place for the 16 categories in action over the coming three days, 8 categories each in the J1 and J2 classifications. With numerous world and Paralympic champions in attendance, it promises to be a high-octane event.