As the Junior World Championships is in full swing in Zagreb, Croatia, and the best juniors athletes representing the future of judo are competing for the IJF honours, the IJF President, Mr. Marius Vizer, announced today that for the second year in a row the world number one senior judoka in each weight category (male and female) will be awarded with $50,000 prize money.

In 2016 the 14 judoka representing 10 countries, who ended 2016 as the world number ones were:

MUNKHBAT Urantsetseg (MGL) -- 48kg

Majlinda KELMENDI (KOS) -- 52kg

DORSUREN Sumiya (MGL) -- 57kg

Tina TRSTENJAK (SLO) -- 63kg

Kim POLLING (NED) -70kg

Kayla HARRISON (USA) -78kg

Idalys ORTIZ (CUB) +78kg

Orkhan SAFAROV (AZE) -60kg

An BAUL (KOR) -66kg

Rustam ORUJOV (AZE) -73g

NAGASE Takanori (JPN) -81kg

BAKER Mashu (JPN) -90kg

Elmar GASIMOV (AZE) -100kg

Teddy RINER (FRA) +100kg

There are still a handful of events before the end of 2017 as Abu Dhabi Grand Slam is about to take place in the upcoming week and will be followed by the The Hague Grand Prix in the Netherlands, the Tokyo Grand Slam in Japan and the World Judo Masters in St. Petersburg, Russia.

In November the International Judo Federation will also organise the Open World Championships in Marrakech, Morocco. While this event is not part of the IJF World Judo Tour that offers points for the World Ranking List it does boast a record amount of prize money of 500,000 which will be divided across the men's and women's openweight medallists.

See also
Commonwealth Games 2024
Oceania Arrives in Glasgow: a Show of Force and Unity

31. Jul. 2026 / As the draw for the Commonwealth Games came to a close, ...

News
What Six Olympic Cycles Taught One of Judo’s Greatest Champions

30. Jul. 2026 / For Telma Monteiro, medals tell only a fraction of ...

Commonwealth Games 2026
Judo at the Commonwealth Games is Ready to Begin!

29. Jul. 2026 / The 23rd edition of the Commonwealth Games is well ...

LA28 Olympic Games
Experience Judo at LA28 with Official Olympic Hospitality

28. Jul. 2026 / The road to the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 has ...

YOG Dakar 2026
100 Days to Go: A Generation Ready to Shine in Dakar

27. Jul. 2026 / In fewer than 100 days, the eyes of the world will ...

IJF Training Camp
One Community, One Passion

25. Jul. 2026 / After an intensive week of training, cultural exchange ...

Commonwealth Games 2026
Last Chance to be Part of the Commonwealth Games

24. Jul. 2026 / The Commonwealth Games is fast-approaching, a highly ...

Interview
Julien Goes Around the World (42)

23. Jul. 2026 / French judoka and coach Julien Brulard continues his ...

IJF Training Camp
From the Tatami to Europe's Largest Glacier

23. Jul. 2026 / The second full day of the International Judo Federation ...

Video
From World-Class Athlete to Architect of Judo’s Future

22. Jul. 2026 / From building six judo clubs to challenging the sport’s ...

IJF Training Camp
Discovering High Performance Together at the IJF Youth Camp

21. Jul. 2026 / The International Judo Federation Youth Camp in Fiesch ...

YOG Dakar 2026
Preparing for Dakar 2026: The IJF Youth Camp Offers More Than Training

20. Jul. 2026 / With the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026 fast approaching, ...

News
Technical Development: a Different Angle

19. Jul. 2026 / The now long-established World Judo Tour has become ...

INTERVIEW EXPRESS
Shishime Ai (JPN)

08. Jun. 2018 / The next reigning world champion to be invited to answer ...

News
5 Key Takeaways from judo’s first Tokyo 2020 qualifier

06. Jun. 2018 / Highlights from Hohhot Grand Prix 2018

VIDEO
Judo for the World in Iran

07. Jun. 2018 / In April 2018, the International Judo Federation and ...

Meeting
JUDO: A Beneficial Cause

07. Jun. 2018 / 'Society should believe in sport as a beneficial cause ...