Tunis back with Grand Prix in the IJF World Tour

In 2018 Tunisia will have a Grand Prix back again in Tunis. Since the Arab revolution the Grand Prix, held in 2009 and 2010, is back after signing a contract with the IJF for a three year agreement hosting the event from from 2018 – 2020.

The Grand Prix in Tunis is Africa’s first annual IJF fixture on the World Judo Tour. The new event will debut in January 2018 and will be the season-opening competition.
The Tunisian Judo Federation, which this month hosted the first international competition with the adapted IJF rules in Tunis, hosted an IJF Grand Prix in Tunis in 2010 and attracted 346 judoka from 50 nations but now the national federation has the resources and platform to stage an annual Grand Prix from next year. 
A delegation from one of Africa’s most developed federation’s recently visited the IJF Presidential Office in Budapest and the IJF Training Centre in Dunavarsany – where their team is currently training – to conclude the deal and become the latest country to be part of the IJF World Judo Tour.
IJF President Marius Vizer said: “The aim of the IJF is to develop judo in all continents and all nations and now we are at the stage where we can host an annual Grand Prix in Africa. This has been a long-term target for the IJF and opens the door to make judo a leading entity in Tunisia and the continent."
“The IJF World Judo Tour truly reflects the universality of our sport and we all look forward to the first edition of this new event in 2018.”
Tunisian President Iskander Hachicha signed the agreement with the IJF. He was an athlete himself and won the Polish Open Warsaw U86kg in 1994. He won 6 African Championships medals and won the African Games in 1999 U90kg and African Championships in 2000. He became President of the Tunisian Judo Federation and was elected in the African Judo Union as board member. Other Tunisian athletes fought at the Grand Prix in Tunis in 2009 and 2010 such as Faicel Jaballah, Nesria Jlassi, Houda Miled, Anis Chedly and Nihel Cheikh Rouhou. who is currently the highest seeded Tunisian athlete in the IJF World Ranking.