Second athlete sent home from Tokyo Olympics for refusing to face Israeli opponent
Sudan’s Mohamed Abdalrasool did not show up for the round 32 bout
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A second judoka has dropped out of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before facing Israel’s Tohar Butbul.
Sudan’s Mohamed Abdalrasool weighed in for the 73-kilogram division bout on Monday but then failed to show up to face Butbul in their round 32 match.
Follow Tokyo Olympics 2021: Latest medals and updates
The International Judo Foundation didn’t immediately announce a reason why Abdalrasool didn’t compete. Sudanese Olympic officials also didn’t immediately comment.
Algeria’s Fethi Nourine was sent home from the Tokyo Games and suspended by the IJF on Saturday after he also withdrew to avoid a potential matchup with Butbul.
“We worked a lot to reach the Olympics, but the Palestinian cause is bigger than all of this,” said Nourine.
Nourine‘s coach Amar Benikhlef told Algerian media: “We were not lucky with the draw. We got an Israeli opponent and that’s why we had to retire. We made the right decision.”
Sign up to our football and rugby newsletters to receive dedicated Tokyo 2020 Olympics emails on both 30 July and 6 August. The Olympic specials will recap on the week and give you all the latest news, analysis, footage and pictures from a Games like no other. To find out how to sign up for free click here and scroll down to football and rugby under the sport section.
Nourine was supposed to face Abdalrasool for the right to meet Butbul.
The International Judo Federation subsequently announced that both Nourine and his coach have been suspended pending an investigation.
Abdalrasool is the world’s 469th-ranked judoka in his weight class, while the accomplished Butbul is seventh.
Nourine also quit the World Judo Championships in 2019 right before he was scheduled to face Butbul.
Additional reporting by agencies
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments