Korean Judo is going to dig a vein of gold for the World Championships for the first time in five years. Heo Mi-mi (Gyeongbuk Sports Association), who has emerged as a rising star in women’s judo, is at the forefront.
The Korean judo team left for Doha, Qatar on the 4th to participate in the 2023 World Judo Championships. 667 athletes from 99 countries will compete in this competition, which will be held from the 7th to the 14th. A total of 18안전놀이터 Koreans compete in 12 weight classes.
Korean judo has fallen into a deep recession since the mid-2010s. In the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, it was only ‘No Gold’ in two consecutive competitions. The last time he won a gold medal at the World Championships, which is said to be more difficult to win a gold medal because there are more athletes than at the Olympics, was held in Baku, Azerbaijan in 2018. After that, he failed to win a gold medal in four consecutive competitions (2020 was canceled due to Corona 19).
With the 2024 Paris Olympics about a year away, it is time for a rebound. This tournament, where up to 2,000 world ranking points are staked, is also an opportunity to check skills in preparation for the Hangzhou Asian Games, which will open in September this year.
In the judo world, Heo Mi-mi, who competes in the women’s 57kg class, is expected to quench her thirst. Heo Mi-mi, a Korean-Japanese, jumped to sixth place in the world by winning three international championships in just one year after wearing the Taegeuk mark in March last year.
Also, Kim Ha-yoon (Ansan City Hall) in the women’s 78kg and above class and Lee Ha-rim (Korea Racing Association) in the men’s 60kg class, who are ranked third in the world, are also expected to win medals. In particular, Kim Ha-yoon, the representative of the women’s heavyweight division, won the Portuguese Grand Prix in January and the Paris Grand Slam in February this year. Lee Ha-rim is also on the rise by winning the Jerusalem Masters at the end of last year, winning a bronze medal at the Tokyo Grand Slam, and winning a bronze medal at the Paris Grand Slam this year.
In addition, Jeon Seung-beom (Pohang City Hall), who won the Tokyo Grand Slam gold medal in the same weight class as Lee Ha-rim, Ahn Paul (Namyangju City Hall) in the men’s 66kg class who won bronze medals at the Tokyo Olympics and last year’s world championships, and the men’s 81kg class who won the gold medal at the Portuguese Grand Prix Lee Jun-hwan (Yongin University) and Kim Min-jong (Yangpyeong-gun Office), who won a bronze medal at last year’s World Championships and a gold medal at this year’s Portuguese Grand Prix, are also expected.