2026 January-June World Tour and Continental Open Selection Procedure

All athletes attending international events must have met the minimum performance standards listed below. The goal is to have athletes compete at the proper level to ensure a beneficial and valuable competitive experience for their development.

Athlete must also be a current USA Judo member in good standing.

• Athletes must be listed on the as of December 31, 2025, with a ranking of “D Level” or higher to qualify for Continental Opens.
  • Athletes who meet this requirement will remain eligible to compete in Continental Opens between January 1 and June 30, 2026, even if they are no longer on the current Senior Elite Roster.
  • Athletes not on the Senior Elite National Roster as of December 31, 2025, may request approval to compete in Continental Opens if they qualify after the cutoff date. To be eligible, they must hold a current Senior Elite Roster ranking of “D Level” or higher. Requests must be submitted to at least 45 days prior to the Continental Open the athlete wishes to attend.

OR

• Have met the eligibility criteria for Grand Prix/Slam events

• Athletes must hold 300 points or higher on the Senior IJF World Ranking List (WRL) posted at the conclusion of the 2025 Tokyo Grand Slam
• Athletes who had 300 points or higher after the 2025 Tokyo Grand Slam are still eligible to compete in Grand Prix/Slam between Jan 1 – Jun 30, 2026, should their points drop below 300
• Open spot requests (Jan 1 – Jun 30, 2026) can only be submitted by athletes who:
  • Had 300+ points after the 2025 Tokyo Grand Slam, or
  • Have 300+ points on the current IJF WRL
• Medical Exception: Athletes may petition the High Performance Committee for a waiver to the aforementioned criteria to attend events for the first half of the year (Jan-Jun) should they have recently undergone a major medical procedure. The petition must be emailed to