In comparison with other sports such as football, cricket and baseball, judo has faced relatively few problems so far, but with the sport liable to the same challenges as any directly influenced by judges, the governing body are keen to take extra precautions.

If a contest takes place and seems to have been played to a pre-determined result, possibly violating the IJF rules, further investigation may be undertaken, it was revealed, with any findings of match fixing resulting in disciplinary action.

Also, if in IJF events two athletes from the same or from different nations, are opposed and one athlete is injured or ill and has to withdraw, they must have a medical certificate from the IJF Medical Commissioner to avoid the suspicion of tactical withdrawals.

The result of the contest will be cancelled if any athlete is caught not telling the truth, it was added, with an IJF spokesman telling insidethegames the tightening of the stance is a general statement rather than a reaction to a specific incident. 

IJF President Marius Vizer is working to tackle match fixing in sport, partly in his other capacity as head of SportAccord ©SportAccord




The action by the IJF comes at a time when successive International Olympic Committee (IOC) Presidents Jacques Rogge and Thomas Bach have cited match fixing as one of the biggest challenges facing international sport.

Since Bach assumed his position in September 2013, the IOC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with international crime-fighting organisation Interpol in order to "identify and address issues which could affect the security and integrity of matches and competitions".