No medal expectations for IJF Wild Cards

The Judo Wild Cards were given out with not too much attention. It was a wild guess who would be allowed to compete without making the qualification. Italian Valentina Moscatt was just drawn in and lucky for the rest mainly the small countries took the wild cards as usual. Not much is expected from the group, certainly no medal, where in the past Urska Zolnir (SLO) and and Jozef Krnac (SLV) benefit of a wild card and took a medal, both in 2004. Srdjan Mrvaljevic (MNE) is the only world class judoka with a wild card who won a medal at World Championships.

Simon Yacoub (PLE), Yann Siccardi (MON) and Laura Salles (AND) are more than average judoka and could win a match in Rio depending on the draw. They all have roots in stronger judo countries such as Germany, France and Spain.

With the wild cards a total of 136 countries enter the Olympic Games making a tital of 389 competitors, 366 qualified, 100 continental quota, 20 universality place athletes (the wild cards), 2 refugees and one Syrian athlete.

114 countries (Africa 25 - Europe 36 - Asia 22 - Oceania 9 - Pan America 22)

+ 20 countries (Universality place)

+ 1 Refugee Olympic Team (2 athletes)

+ Syria (1 athlete)

wild card athletes

Andorra                                                   SALLES LOPEZ Laura

Afghanistan                                            BAKHSHI Tawfiq

Belize                                                       RENICK James

Botswana                                                MOGOPA Gavin

Burundi                                                    GASONGO Antoinette

Guinea                                                     BANGOURA Mamadama

Djibouti                                                    HOUSSEIN Anass Faoud

Laos                                                         SITHISANE Soukphaxay

Macedonia                                             NIKOLOSKA Katerina

Monaco                                                   SICCARDI Yann

Montenegro                                           MRVALJEVIC Srdjan

Myanmar                                                SOE Yan Naing

Nepal                                                       KHATRI Phupu Lamu

Palestine                                                 YACOUB Simon

San Marino                                             GHARBI Karim

Sri Lanka                                                  REPIYALLAGE Chamara Nuwan Dharmawardhana

Sudan                                                       SULIMAN Isslam

Suriname                                                 KOPINSKY Yigal Shimon

Tanzania                                                  MLUGU Andrew Thomas

Yemen                                                     MATER Zeyad