Despite the grand slam coming to an end on Sunday evening, the judo continues in Astana as the Kazakhstan Judo Federation sharpens their focus to welcome a new group of athletes, those vying for world championship medals in the J1 and J2 categories for visually impaired judoka.
IBSA Judo Referee Director Mr Henk Plugge welcomed the referees in advance of the first day of competition, delivering a presentation covering all modifications to the rules and protocols needed to officiate the IBSA event effectively.
“It’s fantastic to see you all here. We are proud to be working with you again. We are very fortunate to have Referee Director Mr Kenichi Shoshida with us from the Kodokan and also Olympic referee Evgeny Rakhlin who will be supervising here.
We are one team. If the referee on the mat does a good job, the supervisor does a good job and the whole team works together, then we can be certain that the right winner will always leave the mat. This is our constant objective, but we know that for new referees, the IBSA rules present a lot of new information. This is another reason that teamwork is essential.”
Mr Plugge explained the additional symbols used on athlete backnumbers to inform other people in specific cases where an athlete is totally blind or is deaf; a red spot for blindness and a yellow one for deafness. This ensures the referee can employ the right method of communication during competition to keep the athletes informed. It was also noted that the beginning of contests looks somewhat different from IJF competitions as referees will escort athletes to the centre of the tatami, a protocol which ensures the safety or athletes and also promotes fair play.
The red spot is to identify J1 athletes, those who are blind.
There was then a long discussion about kumi-kata, especially the starting position. In IJF competitions the referee will begin with ‘hajime’ but in IBSA competitions, the referee calls ‘kumi-kata’ first and supervises the athletes as they take a version of a traditional sleeve and lapel grip. Either judoka can take right-handed or left-handed grips, as they prefer. Feet must be parallel and no judoka can block the other from taking the first grip. The fight begins after ‘hajime’ and not at the initial ‘kumi-kata’ call.
‘Jogai’ was the next word in play, a call that is not heard in IJF judo but with the IBSA athletes it is necessary, used to warn judoka of the approaching edge. This allows the preparation of techniques which move in a direction that will not exclude a movement from being considered for scoring purposes. It also offers a buffer of safety. The coach can also give remarks for safety and orientation during ‘hajime’ but must stick to those themes and not revert to general or other technical coaching.
Mr Plugge then reminded all that in IBSA judo, the ‘head defence / using the head to throw’ rules are exactly as they are for cadets within the IJF rules, so a shido will be given in clear instances. This is another example of how the rules are remaining as close as possible to the IJF rules but with additional notes for the safety of the athletes.
More than 200 athletes are registered for the 2025 IBSA Judo World Championships Astana. The level is high with several Paralympic champions returning to the tatami after their successes last summer in Paris. All the action can be followed live on the IBSA Judo YouTube channel.
Written by Jo Crowley on 13 May 2025.
All photos courtesy of Arlan Olzhabay, Kazakhstan Para Judo Federation and IBSA.
