Egyptian Judo Athlete Refuses Handshake After Losing to Israeli

posted on: Aug 13, 2016

Or Sasson of Israel, in white, defeated Islam El Shehaby, an Egyptian, in a first-round match in the heaviest weight class. Credit Markus Schreiber/Associated Press

By VICTOR MATHERAUG. 12, 2016
The New York Times

An Egyptian judoka declined to shake hands with his Israeli opponent after their match on Friday, eliciting jeers from the crowd.

Or Sasson, the Israeli, defeated Islam El Shehaby, the Egyptian, in a first-round match in the heaviest weight class, over 100 kilograms (about 220 pounds).

After a moment of prayer, El Shehaby got up and seemed reluctant to perform the traditional bow to his opponent. Eventually, he gave a quick nod and left the mat. A judge and a referee urged him to return. Sasson then approached El Shehaby with his hand extended, but El Shehany backed away.

Throughout the competition, as at all judo matches, opponents have bowed to each other, often multiple times. To decline a handshake is a serious breach of judo etiquette.

“That is extremely rare in judo,” the American coach Jimmy Pedro said. “It is especially disrespectful considering it was a clean throw and a fair match. It was completely dishonorable and totally unsportsmanlike on the part of the Egyptian.”

A judo federation spokesman said in an email to The Associated Press that a bow was mandatory but that shaking hands was not. He said El Shehaby’s “attitude will be reviewed after the Games to see if any further action should be taken.”

Before the match, El Shehaby had faced pressure on social media not to show up, the news site NRG reported. “You dishonor Islam if you lose to Israel,” he was told. “How can you cooperate with a killer?”

There is a history of animosity between Israeli and other Middle Eastern athletes at the Olympics, including in judo.

Israeli and Lebanese athletes got into a dispute about sharing a bus to the opening ceremony last week. The Lebanese team admitted preventing Israeli athletes from boarding, but said it was because the bus had been reserved for the Lebanese athletes.

When a Saudi judo player forfeited a match on Tuesday, the official reason was that she was injured, but the Israeli news media claimed it was because she would have faced an Israeli in the next round.

At the 2004 Athens Games, Arash Miresmaeili, a gold medal favorite in judo, was disqualified for showing up over the weight limit for his first-round match against an Israeli. It was reported that he had gone on an eating binge to intentionally forfeit, and he said, “I refused to fight my Israeli opponent to sympathize with the suffering of the people of Palestine, and I do not feel upset at all.”

Source: www.nytimes.com