Morocco’s martial artists have been dominating the sports news. Between October and November 2019 alone there were countless headlines. The national Moroccan karate team took home 10 medals at the World Junior Karate Championships in Chile. Morocco won the Muay Thai Arab Championship in the UAE and 19-year-old Achraf Mahboubi won Bronze at the International Taekwondo Competition in China.
The latest Moroccan team to join the champion list is the kingdom’s Rabat based national Judo team. The 19th edition of the Arab Judo championships took place between November 1-5, 2019 in Amman Jordan. The men’s team took home three gold medals, one silver, and one bronze. Egypt and Syria came in second and third place.
According to the Moroccan Royal Judo Federation, Judo was first introduced to Moroccans by the French in 1946. The first Moroccan Judo Club was opened in Casablanca in 1949.