Azerbaijan to host World Judo Championship 2026

Azerbaijan is set to host the World Judo Championship next year, Azernews reports.

The Azerbaijan Judo Federation (AJF) and the International Judo Federation and the Azerbaijan Judo Federation reached an agreement in this regard.

This upcoming championship in Baku will kick off the judo qualification events for the 2028 Summer Olympics ( Los Angeles 2028) scheduled to take place on July 14-30, 2028, in the United States.

Azerbaijan previously held the World Judo Championship in 2018.

The country will once again be at the centre of the judo world by hosting the World Cup in June 2026.

The programme of the 2028 Summer Olympics is expected to include events in at least 35 sports, including 27 of the "core" Olympic sports contested since 2016.

These Games will introduce changes to the programme of core Olympic sports, including the permanent addition of skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing after having been featured as optional sports in 2020 and 2024.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art across the country. Since 2015, the Federation has been led by Rovnag Abdullayev.

The country's modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka, Elchin Ismayilov, became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

The list of the country's top judo fighters includes Rustam Orujov, ?rina Kindzerskaya, Mammadali Mehdiyev, Elmar Gasimov, Hidayat Heydarov, Zelim Kotsoev, Ushangi Kokauri, and Nijat Shikhalizada.

At the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games, judokas Hidayat Heydarov (73 kg) and Zelym Kotsoiev (100 kg) earned gold medals for Azerbaijan.