The international judo family is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of IOC Member Alex Gilady at the age of 79. Mr Gilady was a good friend to judo and attended the World Judo Tour events regularly.
Mr Alex Gilady presenting medals during the 2021 Tel Aviv Grand Slam

A pioneer of television coverage of the Olympic Games, he began as a sports commentator, before becoming the Head of Sports, Special Operations, Vice President and eventually Senior Vice President of NBC Sports.

NBC began to broadcast the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964, the same year Mr Gilady started his career as a journalist in his home country of Israel.

Following his 1984 to the Radio and Television Commission of the International Olympic Committee, in which role he served through to 2015, 10 years later, in 1994, he was elected as an IOC Member.

Mr Alex Gilady (left) and Mr Marius Vizer (right)

IJF President, Mr Marius Vizer said, "It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of IOC Member Alex Gilady. Mr Gilady’s extensive expertise and devotion to the service of sport and its values will be reminisced. He was a great visionary in the world of sport and his specialisation in TV Broadcasting definitively added to the revolution in modernising all sports and how they were presented on television and a result of that was an increasing interest and viewership of sport content throughout the world.

He added great value also in judo, supporting us with the inclusion of 4D replay during the Tokyo Games. Moreover on a personal level he was a great friend to movement, a person filled with passion and life.

On behalf of the International Judo Federation I would like to express our sincere condolences and deepest sympathies to the family and friends of our dear colleague Alex and to the entire sport family.

Our thoughts accompany you in these difficult moments. He will be greatly missed."

See also
IJF Academy
British Judo Hosts IJF Academy UCJI Assessment

11. Sep. 2025 / British Judo proudly welcomed the IJF Academy UCJI ...

News
Nine Nations Unite for Brazil Judo Camp

11. Sep. 2025 / A truly international judo gathering is underway in ...

Judo for the World
Zanzibar Opens New State-of-the-Art Dojo

10. Sep. 2025 / The Zanzibar Judo Association, a member of the Judo ...

Video
Louves: Strength, Freedom, Resilience

09. Sep. 2025 / The excitement was palpable on Monday 8th September ...

News
Italian Juniors Dominate in Bratislava

08. Sep. 2025 / Just a week after the world’s best cadets assembled ...

News
China Flexes Muscle in Hangzhou

08. Sep. 2025 / On 6th and 7th September the Hangzhou Asian Open concluded ...

Judo for the World
Clarisse Agbegnenou Inspires Young Rwandan Judoka

08. Sep. 2025 / As a prelude to the SportsBiz Africa Forum 2025, the ...

News
Oceania Continental Championships to Return in 2026

07. Sep. 2025 / At the close of the OTP Bank World Senior Championships, ...

Judo for Peace
Judo and Peace in Motion

04. Sep. 2025 / Earlier this year we followed Austrian 6th dan judoka ...

News
Changing of the Guard in Austrian Judo

04. Sep. 2025 / Olympic medallist Shamil Borchashvili is retiring after ...

Interview
Julien Goes Around the World (32)

02. Sep. 2025 / A few days ago, on the occasion of the Cadet World ...

Cadet WC 2025
Japan Retain Their Mixed Team Crown in Sofia

31. Aug. 2025 / The closing day of the OTP Group World Cadet Championships ...

Cadet WC 2025
Mixed Teams: A New Balance of Power in Sofia?

31. Aug. 2025 / The curtain has not yet fallen on the OTP Group World ...

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 ...