| Current event or competition: 2025 World Judo Championships | |
 | |
| Competition details | |
|---|---|
| Discipline | Judo |
| Type | Annual |
| Organiser | International Judo Federation (IJF) |
| History | |
| First edition | 1956 inTokyo, Japan |
| Editions | 38 men (2025) 29 women (2025) |
| Most wins |  Japan – 432 medals(186 gold medals) |
| Most recent | Budapest 2025 |
| Next edition | Baku 2026 |
TheWorld Judo Championships are the highest level of internationaljudo competition, next to the quadrennialjudo events at theSummer Olympic Games. The world championships are held by theInternational Judo Federation annually, except the calendar years of the Summer Olympics. Qualified judoka compete in their respective categories as representatives of their home countries. Team fixtures have also been held since 1994. The men's championships first took placein 1956, though the format and periodicity of the competition have changed over time.The last edition of the World Judo Championships (2025) was held inBudapest,Hungary.
The first edition of the world championships took place inTokyo,Japan in 1956. There were no weight classes at the time and Japanese judokaShokichi Natsui became the first world champion in history, defeating fellow countrymanYoshihiko Yoshimatsu in the final. The second world championship was also held in Tokyo two years later, with the Japanese winning the top two spots in the competition for the second time. In 1961, the championship was held outside Japan for the first time, andDutch judokaAnton Geesink defeated the prior world champion,Koji Sone, inParis,France, to become the first non-Japanese world champion.
The1965 World Judo Championships were held inRio de Janeiro,Brazil, and weight classes were implemented for the first time with the addition of the −68 kg, −80 kg, and +80 kg categories. Judo had become anOlympic sport at the1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo initially for men, and a permanent sport after a brief absence at the1968 Summer Olympics.
Despite this progressive enlargement, it took until 1980 for women to participate in the world championships. The first women's world championships were held inNew York City in 1980, and were held in alternating years as the men's championships until the1987 World Judo Championships inEssen, where the two competitions were merged into one world championship. The mixed championships have been held biannually since 1987. On the Commonwealth Games side, Judo was added to theCommonwealth Games programme, initially as an optional sport for the first three editions in 1990, 2002 and 2014 but it is now a core sport from 2022 onwards. The women’s judo was included at the1992 Summer Olympics. In 2005, the world championships made its debut on theAfrican continent inCairo,Egypt. In theInternational Judo Federation meeting held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2007 (during the2007 World Judo Championships), it was decided that France would host the world championships for the fifth time in 2011.
There are currently 16 tournaments in the world championships, with 8 weight classes for each gender.
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The world championships have been held in every continent except Oceania and Antarctica.
| Number | Year | Dates | City and host country | Venue | # Countries | # Athletes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1956 | 3 May |  Tokyo,Japan | Kuramae Kokugikan | 21 | 31 | [1][2] |
| 2 | 1958 | 30 November | Tokyo,Japan | Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium | 18 | 39 | [3][4] |
| 3 | 1961 | 2 December |  Paris,France | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | 25 | 57 | [5][6] |
| 4 | 1965 | 14–17 October |  Rio de Janeiro,Brazil | Maracanãzinho | 42 | 150 | [7][8] |
| 5 | 1967 | 9–11 August |  Salt Lake City,United States | University of Utah | 25 | 115 | [9][10] |
| 6 | 1969 | 23–25 October |  Mexico City,Mexico | Palacio de los Deportes | 39 | 187 | [11][12] |
| 7 | 1971 | 2–4 September |  Ludwigshafen,West Germany | Friedrich-Ebert-Halle | 52 | 310 | [13][14] |
| 8 | 1973 | 22–24 June |  Lausanne,Switzerland | Palais de Beaulieu | 50 | 288 | [15][16] |
| 9 | 1975 | 23–25 October |  Vienna,Austria | Wiener Stadthalle | 46 | 274 | [17][18] |
| 1977 | 19–24 September |  Barcelona,Spain | Palau dels Esports | Cancelled | [a] | ||
| 10 | 1979 | 6–9 December | Paris,France | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | 54 | 273 | [20][21] |
| 11 | 1981 | 3–6 September |  Maastricht,Netherlands | Euro Hall | 51 | 255 | [22][23] |
| 12 | 1983 | 13–16 October |  Moscow,Soviet Union | Lenin Palace of Sports | 44 | 226 | [24][25] |
| 13 | 1985 | 26–29 September |  Seoul,South Korea | Jamsil Arena | 39 | 189 | [26][27] |
| Number | Year | Dates | City and host country | Venue | # Countries | # Athletes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1980 | 29–30 November | New York,United States | Madison Square Garden | 27 | 149 | [28][29] |
| 2 | 1982 | 4–5 December | Paris,France | Stade Pierre de Coubertin | 35 | 174 | [30][31] |
| 3 | 1984 | 10–11 November | Vienna,Austria | Wiener Stadthalle | 32 | 183 | [32][33] |
| 4 | 1986 | 24–26 October | Maastricht,Netherlands | Geusselt Sports Hall | 35 | 162 | [34][35] |
| Number | Year | Dates | City and host country | Venue | # Countries | # Athletes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2008 | 20–21 December | Levallois-Perret,France | Marcel Cerdan Palace of Sports | 18 | 51 | [90][91] |
| — | 2009 | Cancelled | |||||
| 2 | 2011 | 29–30 October |  Tyumen,Russia | Judo Centre | 22 | 49 | [92][93] |
| 3 | 2017 | 11–12 November |  Marrakech,Morocco | Palais des Congrès | 28 | 58 | [94][95] |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan | 60 | 52 | 56 | 168 |
| 2 | France | 35 | 21 | 57 | 113 |
| 3 |  China | 20 | 13 | 14 | 47 |
| 4 |  Cuba | 16 | 16 | 29 | 61 |
| 5 |  Great Britain | 13 | 15 | 20 | 48 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 8 | 11 | 37 | 56 |
| 7 |  Belgium | 8 | 9 | 9 | 26 |
| 8 |  Italy | 8 | 5 | 12 | 25 |
| 9 |  South Korea | 7 | 1 | 20 | 28 |
| 10 |  Brazil | 5 | 6 | 18 | 29 |
| 11 |  North Korea | 5 | 2 | 4 | 11 |
| 12 | Germany | 4 | 8 | 18 | 30 |
| 13 |  Canada | 3 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
| 14 |  Mongolia | 3 | 1 | 11 | 15 |
| 15 | Austria | 3 | 1 | 7 | 11 |
| 16 |  Colombia | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| 17 |  Spain | 2 | 8 | 10 | 20 |
| 18 | West Germany | 2 | 5 | 12 | 19 |
| 19 | United States | 2 | 5 | 10 | 17 |
| 20 |  Poland | 2 | 2 | 11 | 15 |
| 21 |  Israel | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 22 |  Argentina | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
 Croatia | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | |
| 24 |  Ukraine | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 25 |  Slovenia | 1 | 5 | 8 | 14 |
| 26 |  Kosovo | 1 | 1 | 7 | 9 |
| 27 |  Georgia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| International Judo Federation[a] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Venezuela | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 30 |  Portugal | 0 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 31 | Russia | 0 | 3 | 10 | 13 |
| 32 |  Romania | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 33 |  Australia | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 34 |  Hungary | 0 | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| 35 |  Uzbekistan | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 36 |  Kazakhstan | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
 Turkey | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |
| 38 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 Norway | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
 Puerto Rico | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
 Sweden | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 42 | Soviet Union | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 43 |  Azerbaijan | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 44 | Switzerland | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
 Tunisia | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 46 |  Algeria | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Belarus | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Bulgaria | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Chinese Taipei | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Czech Republic | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Greece | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Serbia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Serbia and Montenegro | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| – | Individual Neutral Athletes[b] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 222 | 222 | 444 | 888 | |
The first World Team Judo Championships was held in 1994 as separate event and only for men's national teams. The first World Team Judo Championships for women's national team was held as separate event in 1997.[96] Since 1998, World Team Judo Championships for men's and women's national teams have been held at the same time and venue. It were held every four years until 2006 (although promotional team events were held during2003 and2005 World Judo Championships) and every year from 2007 to 2015 (except 2009). Since2011 men's and women's team competitions became the part of World Judo Championships. Starting from 2017, it were merged into mixed team competition. Judokas who participates in the individual events at the World Championships often do not participate in the team competition.
The results of promotional team events which were held during2003 and2005 World Judo Championships are not included into overall statistics.
Men's medal count – team events (1994–2015)[edit]
Total medal count – team events (1994–2025)[edit]
| Women's medal count – team events (1997–2015)[edit]
Mixed medal count – team events (2017–2025)[edit]
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List of World Judo Championships medalists
Updated after the2025 World Judo Championships.
This table include all medals in the individual and team competitions won at the World Judo Championships as well as at the separate World Team Judo Championships and separate World Judo Open Championships.
Boldface denotes active judokas and highest medal count among all judokas (including these who not included in these tables) per type.
| Rank | Judoka | Country | Weights | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Teddy Riner | France | +100 kg / Open | 2007 | 2023 | 11 | 1 | – | 12 |
| 2 | Naoya Ogawa | Japan | +95 kg / Open | 1987 | 1995 | 4 | – | 3 | 7 |
| 3 | Hifumi Abe | Japan | −66 kg | 2017 | 2025 | 4 | – | 2 | 6 |
| 4 | Naohisa Takatō | Japan | −60 kg | 2013 | 2022 | 4 | – | 1 | 5 |
| 5 | David Douillet | France | +95 kg / Open | 1993 | 1997 | 4 | – | – | 4 |
| Shōzō Fujii | Japan | −80 kg / −78 kg | 1971 | 1979 | 4 | – | – | 4 | |
| Yasuhiro Yamashita | Japan | +95 kg / Open | 1979 | 1983 | 4 | – | – | 4 | |
| 8 | Ilias Iliadis | Greece | −90 kg | 2005 | 2014 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| 9 | Tato Grigalashvili | Georgia | −81 kg | 2021 | 2025 | 3 | 2 | – | 5 |
| 10 | Alexander Mikhaylin | Russia | −100 kg / +100 kg / Open | 1999 | 2011 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| Rank | Judoka | Country | Events | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Teddy Riner | France | +100 kg / Open / Team | 2007 | 2023 | 12 | 1 | 1 # | 14 # |
| 2 | Soichi Hashimoto | Japan | −73 kg / Team | 2017 | 2023 | 7 *## | 2 | 2 | 11 *## |
| 3 | Shōhei Ōno | Japan | −73 kg / Team | 2013 | 2019 | 6 * | – | 1 | 7 * |
| 4 | Masashi Ebinuma | Japan | −66 kg / Team | 2011 | 2015 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Riki Nakaya | Japan | −73 kg / Team | 2011 | 2017 | 5 ** | 1 | 1 * | 7 *** | |
| 6 | David Douillet | France | +95 kg / Open / Team | 1993 | 1997 | 5 * | – | – | 5 * |
| 7 | Alexander Mikhaylin | Russia | −100 kg / +100 kg / Open / Team | 1998 | 2013 | 4 | 3 * | 5 | 12 * |
| 8 | Goki Tajima | Japan | −90 kg / Team | 2022 | 2025 | 4 # | 1 | 1 * | 6 *# |
| 9 | Naoya Ogawa | Japan | +95 kg / Open | 1987 | 1995 | 4 | – | 3 | 7 |
| 10 | Hifumi Abe | Japan | −66 kg | 2017 | 2025 | 4 | – | 2 | 6 |
| Takanori Nagase | Japan | −81 kg / Team | 2014 | 2023 | 4 # | – | 2 | 6 # |
# including one medal of the World Team Championships won as reserve
* including one medal of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only
*# including one medal of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only and one won as reserve
** including two medals of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only
*## including one medal of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only and two won as reserve
*** including three medals of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only
| Rank | Judoka | Country | Weights | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ryōko Tani (Tamura) | Japan | −48 kg | 1991 | 2007 | 7 | – | 1 | 8 |
| Tong Wen | China | +78 kg / Open | 2001 | 2011 | 7 | – | 1 | 8 | |
| 3 | Ingrid Berghmans | Belgium | +72 kg / −72 kg / Open | 1980 | 1989 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 11 |
| 4 | Clarisse Agbegnenou | France | −63 kg | 2013 | 2024 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
| 5 | Uta Abe | Japan | −52 kg | 2018 | 2025 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
| 6 | Gao Fenglian | China | +72 kg / Open | 1984 | 1989 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Kye Sun-hui | North Korea | −52 kg / −57 kg | 1997 | 2007 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| 8 | Noriko Anno | Japan | +72 kg / −72 kg / −78 kg | 1993 | 2003 | 4 | 1 | – | 5 |
| Karen Briggs | Great Britain | −48 kg | 1982 | 1991 | 4 | 1 | – | 5 | |
| 10 | Driulis González | Cuba | −56 kg / −57 kg / −63 kg | 1993 | 2007 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| Rank | Judoka | Country | Events | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clarisse Agbegnenou | France | −63 kg / Team | 2011 | 2024 | 8 # | 3 * | 3 * | 14 **# |
| 2 | Tong Wen | China | +78 kg / Open / Team | 2001 | 2011 | 8 | – | 2 | 10 |
| 3 | Ryōko Tani (Tamura) | Japan | −48 kg | 1991 | 2007 | 7 | – | 1 | 8 |
| 4 | Ingrid Berghmans | Belgium | +72 kg / −72 kg / Open | 1980 | 1989 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 11 |
| 5 | Momo Tamaoki | Japan | −57 kg / Team | 2018 | 2025 | 6 ****# | 2 | 2 | 10 ****# |
| 6 | Chizuru Arai | Japan | −70 kg / Team | 2015 | 2019 | 6 # | – | – | 6 # |
| Akira Sone | Japan | +78 kg / Team | 2017 | 2023 | 6 **## | – | – | 6 **## | |
| 8 | Driulis González | Cuba | −56 kg / −57 kg / −63 kg / Team | 1993 | 2007 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 11 |
| 9 | Misato Nakamura | Japan | −52 kg / Team | 2006 | 2015 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| 10 | Gévrise Émane | France | −70 kg / −63 kg / Team | 2005 | 2015 | 5 * | 1 | 2 | 8 * |
# including one medal of the World Team Championships won as reserve
* including one medal of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only
**# including two medals of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only and one won as reserve
**## including two medals of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only and two won as reserve
****# including four medals of the World Team Championships won for participation in the qualifying only and one won as reserve
| Category | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Youngest world champion |
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| Oldest world champion |
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Internationaljudo | ||
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| Africa |  | |
| Asia | ||
| Americas | ||
| Europe | ||
| Oceania | ||
| Others | ||
