International Judo Federation

The sport of judo is governed internationally by the International Judo Federation (IJF), which was formed on 11 July 1951, in London, Great Britain, with eight founding members: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.

The first edition of the Men’s World Judo Championships was held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1956. Men’s judo made its first Olympic appearance at the 1964 Games, also held in Tokyo, and returned to the Olympic fold at München 1972.

New York City (USA) hosted the first World Judo Championships exclusively for women in 1980. In 1987, the World Judo Championships held in Essen (then part of West Germany) were the first to include both men and women events. Finally, at the 1992 Barcelona Games, Olympic judo events for women were staged for the first time.

Judo has also been a part of the Youth Summer Olympics programme since the competition’s inception, at Singapore 2010, with events for boys and girls.

As of January 2026, the IJF has 205 members. The federation’s current president is Austria’s Marius Vizer, and its head office is located in Budapest, Hungary.