- IJF President Marius Vizer has criticised the quality of the Champ-de-Mars Arena
- The judo competition will begin on Saturday, three days after the comments
- Organizers have insisted the stadium will be “competition-ready” by then.
The president of the International Judo Federation has expressed anger at the alleged state of the venue ahead of the Paris Olympics.
The Games are already in full swing, with football and rugby matches taking place on Wednesday, two days before the official opening ceremony.
Judo, meanwhile, is scheduled to begin on Saturday at the Champ-de-Mars Arena, although concerns have been raised about the venue just days before it is set to be used for the competition.
Marius Vizer is a former judoka and judo coach, and has been president of the International Judo Federation since 2007. Now, he has criticised organisers as his sport prepares to take to the world stage.
The 65-year-old athlete told Le Parisien that the venue is not in a condition to host the event, stressing that the tatamis are not sufficient for the competition and claiming that they do not meet the standards set by the International Federation.
The president of the International Jewish Federation, Marius Vizer, harshly criticized the Champ-de-Mars Arena before the start of the Olympic Games
The stadium will host the judo competition starting on Saturday, but it is not yet ready to do so.
Vizer criticised the mats and weighing machines, also saying the room was dirty.
As of Wednesday, the report said the platform and weighing apparatus were still not ready just three days before the start of the tournament.
The lounge is also said to be dirty and in need of cleaning, and the location of the venue has also come under criticism.
The organisers, however, have assured that the Arena “will be ready in time for the competition”, although they admitted that “there are still some points (that need) attention, such as the assembly of some equipment and the cleaning of the site”.
They added: “Our teams are fully mobilised to ensure these finishing touches are completed.”
The judo competition was originally scheduled to take place at the Arena Bercy, but has been replaced by gymnastics, trampolining and basketball.
Judo is an event in which France has had great success in the past, winning 57 medals in the sport in Olympic history.
Only Japan have won more with 96, with Clarisse Agbegnenou, Teddy Riner and Romane Dicko backed to triumph for the hosts.
Organisers have insisted it will be ready for competition, acknowledging there is still work to be done.
Jude is one of France’s best hopes for a medal, as it is the second most successful country of all time in this event at the Olympic Games.
Meanwhile, double Olympic medallist and world champion Romane Dicko has spoken out about the hate she has received online.
Dicko, in preparation for the competition, called for more protection for athletes after being subjected to online abuse.
The world champion over 78kg and double Olympic medallist took to social media this week to criticise some of the messages she received online during the build-up to the event.
“Who, in 2024, still believes that people who exercise are necessarily thin?” she said on TikTok. “That people who do high-level exercise are necessarily thin and lean?”
‘I compete at a high level and I have love handles. Yes, I do. And that didn’t stop me from practicing judo at a very high level. Nor did it stop me from winning world championships, nor from being an Olympic medalist in Tokyo.’