Mr Mohamed Meridja, the IJF Education and Coaching Director, led the welcome on behalf of the IJF President, Mr Marius Vizer, "Dear president, dear judo family, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the International Judo Federation, I wish you a warm welcome to the Qazaqstan Barysy Grand Slam 2023. Our judo family is happy to return to Astana, a city which has hosted a grand prix in the recent past and also the 2015 Astana World Championships."
"Our president, Mr Marius Vizer would like to convey his best greetings to all the organisers and participants. We wish the Kazakhstan Judo Federation good luck and we want to assure them of our full support. We are sure to have a good competition. Good luck to everyone."
Mr Samat Zhylkybaev, the Head of the Department of Physical Culture and Sports of Astana, said, "Dear ladies and gentlemen, dear guests, we are pleased to welcome you here in Kazakhstan and I would like to say that, before this tournament, Kazakhstan held a series of grand prix events. Now we have the opportunity to organise the grand slam tournament. For us it is an honour. On behalf of our country, we would like to say thanks to the whole judo family and especially the president of the IJF, Mr Marius Vizer. We would like to say that the joined work of the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Astana city administration and the Kazakhstan Judo Federation makes us ready to organise this tournament at the highest level. I would like to wish success and good luck to all the participants."
Mr Florin Daniel Lascau, Head Referee Director, outlined the IJF’s continued commitment to refereeing, noting selections of many of the world’s best referees for this event. The pre-event mat-based referee meetings continue in Astana, ensuring all referees, supervisors and directors are aligned.
Head Sport Director Mr Vladimir Barta then conducted the draw itself, ensuring each of the 14 weight categories was drawn according to the current world ranking. 334 athletes are registered from 42 countries and are arriving from all continents.
The draw closed with a summary of expectations regarding the timing of the event and some of the operational aspects such as judge pre-control and weigh-in timings.
Day 1 of the Qasaqstan Barysy Grand Slam begins at 10:30am on Friday 16th June and can be followed live at JudoTV.com.