Tokyo 2020, Algerian judoka retires: “I don’t challenge Israeli”

Away from the Olympics so as not to challenge an Israeli athlete. An Algerian judoka, Fethi Nourine, retired before the start of the competitions. In an interview with Algerian TV, Nourine said his support for the Palestinian cause prevents him from competing with an Israeli. “We worked hard to reach the Olympics and the news came as a shock, a bolt from the blue”, said the judoka, stressing that “he does not want to get his hands dirty” and that his decision is “final”. The 30-year-old, who was supposed to compete in the 73 kilogram category, was drawn against Sudanese Mohamed Abdalrasool. If he won, he would have had to challenge Butbul, who had already qualified for the second round. This is not the first time that Nourine has retired from the competition to avoid facing an Israeli opponent. He retired from the 2019 World Cup in Tokyo for the same reason. “We were unlucky with the draw. We caught an Israeli opponent and that is why we had to retire. We made the right decision,” his coach Amar Ben Yaklif told Algerian media. Previously athletes from other countries, including Iran and Egypt, refused to compete against the Israelis.