At the medal-winning summit of the sport, there are great champions who have shared an extra layer of judo, one which can only be fully understood if competing at the highest level and if standing on the biggest rostra of the world has been part of the process. These judoka share something incredible, unwritten, inexplicable, but very special and unifying.
Many of our high-achieving judoka stay in the sport in different ways, working with national or continental federations or the international federation, but whether they do or not, judo is always with them.
Their shared understanding shapes how they approach the life ahead of them, how they cope with adversity and how they prepare to meet new goals. It shapes relationships and their perceptions of self without defining them in singularity.
At the draw of the 2025 Ulaanbaatar, just by chance, 4 of our great champions were present, each in a role beyond their competitive career. This was a chance to remind them and us of what a life in judo can feel like, how uplifting it can be and what it means to grow up with these friends who understand and accept this piece of you without reservation.
