The 13 Greatest Olympic Judokas of All Time
Three of these won Olympic gold in the same weight class more than once; one of them is better known for what she did after judo.
1Tadahiro NomuraThe only judoka to win three consecutive Olympic golds in the same weight class, at 60kg in 1996, 2000 and 2004.
2Teddy RinerFrench heavyweight with two Olympic golds and eleven world titles, unbeaten for 150 straight bouts.
3Yasuhiro YamashitaWon 1984 Olympic gold on a torn calf muscle and retired with 203 consecutive victories.
4Anton GeesinkThe Dutchman who beat Akio Kaminaga in 1964 to end Japan's grip on Olympic judo.
5Kosei Inoue2000 Olympic champion whose uchi-mata is still the textbook version of the throw.
6Ilias IliadisGreek judoka who took Olympic gold at seventeen in Athens in 2004.
7Kayla HarrisonFirst American to win Olympic judo gold, and she did it twice, in 2012 and 2016.
8Shohei OnoTwo-time Olympic champion at 73kg, widely called the most technically complete judoka of his era.
9Driulis GonzalezCuban who medalled at four straight Olympics, taking gold at 56kg in 1996.
10Ronda RouseyTook bronze at 70kg in Beijing 2008, the first Olympic judo medal ever won by an American woman.
11Clarisse AgbegnenouFrench 63kg champion with six world titles and Olympic gold in Tokyo.
12Lukas KrpalekCzech judoka who won Olympic gold in two different weight classes, at 100kg and heavyweight.
13Majlinda KelmendiWon Kosovo's first Olympic medal of any colour with 52kg gold in Rio.
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Comments
Bronze in Beijing was the first Olympic judo medal an American woman had won, and it stands against Yamashita's 203 straight victories: https://youpick.best/articles/ronda-rousey-ranked-many-ways
