Saeid Mollaei
FILE - Saeid Mollaei of Mongolia celebrates with his silver medal during the award ceremony for the men -81kg judo match at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, on July 27, 2021. The Iran judo federation’s appeal against a four-year ban from international events for refusing to let its athletes face opponents from Israel has been heard, and a verdict should take at least several weeks. The IJF acted against Iran after former world champion Saeid Mollaei left the team in 2019. He claimed he was ordered to lose matches at the 2019 world championships to avoid facing Israelis. Mollaei won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics competing for Mongolia. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Iran appeals ban from judo for avoiding Israeli opponents

Nov. 23, 2021 11:29 AM EST

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Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine has been banned from competition for 10 years by the International Judo Federation after his withdrawal from the Tokyo Olympics...

Vladislav Larin of the Russian Olympic Committee, left, reacts as the referee signals his win for a gold medal for taekwondo men's 80kg match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
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Victor Sterpu of Moldova, top, and Tohar Butbul of Israel compete during their men's -73kg round of 16 judo match at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, July 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
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Kimia Alizadeh Zonoozi, Refugee Olympic Team, right, is attacked by Britain's Jade Jones during the taekwondo women's 57kg match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 25, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
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People prepare the field of play for judo at the Nippon Budokan ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 23, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Algerian judoka refuses potential Olympic bout with Israeli

By Greg Beacham Jul. 23, 2021 10:29 PM EDT