Former Olympic judo champion Satoshi Ishii believes the rule changes in judo that eliminated leg grabs and double leg takedowns were politically motivated to benefit certain athletes and organizations.
In a revealing interview on Bodoni’s podcast, Ishii expressed his disapproval of the rule changes implemented by the International Judo Federation (IJF) in 2009, which banned attacks below the belt.
“It is very bad,” Ishii stated. “It is part of judo technique.” He explained that the rule changes fundamentally altered the sport, eliminating entire categories of techniques that were integral to judo.
“I think—I believe it’s political because all the famous guys are tall, you know, that’s why they changed.”
“because we are really good for throwing compared to other countries, so we have an advantage. But over 100 kilos, uh, we are smaller bodies, so we need to cut with both hands. We need to take legs.”
“under 100 kilos, Japanese are always good, you know? Like 60, 66, 73, 81—Japan took gold medals in the last Olympics in these four. And under 100 kilos, Japan took, but over 100—no.”
Ishii, who won gold for Japan in the 2008 Olympics before transitioning to MMA, believes the changes were made to benefit taller athletes and certain countries. “I think I believe that [it was] politic because all famous guys are too tall,” he said.
The former champion noted that the rule changes particularly disadvantaged Japanese judoka in the heavier weight classes, where they relied more on leg attacks to compete against taller opponents. “Plus 100 kilo, we are small bodies so we need to cut both hands, we need to take legs,” Ishii explained.
He also criticized the current IJF leadership, suggesting they lack deep judo experience and make decisions that don’t necessarily benefit the sport. Ishii claimed athletes who complain about rule changes face warnings and pressure to apologize.
IJF President Mr Marius Vizer was unanimously re-elected in 2021. He was first elected in 2007 and judo leg grabs were banned in 2009. Between 1995 and 2001, he was President of the Romanian Judo Federation. Between 2000 and 2007, Vizer was President of the European Judo Union. Since 2007, he has been the president of the International Judo Federation. Vizer is a long-time friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. During his tenure at the helm of the IJF, it named Putin as its honorary president and an IJF Ambassador in 2008. That status was initially suspended and then stripped in February and March 2022 in reaction to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
If we also account for the Olympic medalists and not just for World Championship winners we get a slightly different picture.
The rise of European and former Soviet nations is even more apparent in the Olympic data
French dominance (especially Teddy Riner) becomes more evident in the combined dataset
As the sport continues to evolve, Ishii’s insider perspective raises questions about the motivations behind rule changes and their impact on judo’s traditions and competitive landscape.
