Algeria’s judoka Olympic competitor accused of avoiding competing with Israel

Israel accused the Algerian judoka Olympic competitor of deliberately failing a weigh-in to avoid competing against an Israeli fighter, international media and Olympic bodies reported on Sunday night.

Algeria’s Redouane Messaoud Dris, 22, had been scheduled to compete in the -73kg category against Israel’s Tohar Butbul on Monday, but was found to weigh above the 73kg limit and was therefore removed from the draw. 

"Redouane Messaoud Driss has been disqualified... Dris, entered in the men's -73 kg event, failed the weigh-in. Therefore his opponent Tohar Butbul will win the scheduled contest by walkover," Games organizers said in a statement.

"Tohar's competitor has removed himself from the competition," the Israeli Olympic Committee said in a statement. "The Israeli delegation will continue to compete with the Olympic values in mind, we believe this kind of behaviour has no place in the world of sport."

Algeria's history of refusing to compete against Israel

Algeria’s athletes have refused to compete with Israel in the past. In the 2021 Tokyo games,  Fethi Nourine refused a judo match against Butbol. As a result, the International Judo Federation handed him a 10 year suspension. 

Despite competitors refusing to face Butbul, he won bronze at the previous Olympics. 

The French news outlet Ouest France reported only days ago that Dris was expected to forfeit the match, as Algeria does not recognize the state of Israel.