Korean judoka qualify for London Olympics

Korean men’s Judo has secured slots in all seven weight divisions for the 2012 London Olympics, a local governing body announced yesterday.

According to the Korea Judo Association, the men’s team will be able to send their judoka to all seven weight divisions in the Summer Games based on the world rankings, which was updated after the Judo World Cup in the Czech Republic ended on Sunday.

In men’s judo those who are ranked under No. 22 qualify for the quadrennial event, while the women’s standard is set to under the No. 14 ranking.

The KJA said the ticket to London will be officially determined from the world rankings based on April 30, but since there is only one tournament left to pile up ranking points, there shouldn’t be major changes in the ranks.

The KJA said that although high-ranked judoka will be able to perform in London this July, it will hold national team qualification tests for the 90 kilogram (198-pound) division since Lee Kyu-won (14th) and Song Dae-nam (17th) are close in world rankings.

Noticeable qualified male judoka include the 2008 Beijing Olympic silver medalists Wang Ki-chun of 73-kilogram division and Kim Jae-bum of the 81-kilogram division.

[kjoo@joongang.co.kr]