The signing ceremony of the donation contract for the “Soliman Judo Hall Renovation Project” took place on January 28, 2022, at the municipality of Soliman in the presence of Mr. Mohamed Ridha MLIKA, Governor of Nabeul.
The donation contract of 260,121 DT was signed by His Excellency Mr. SHIMIZU Shinsuke, Ambassador of Japan in Tunisia and Mr. Sofiene MEHRI, President of the Judo Association of Soliman.
This donation will allow the Soliman Judo Association to renovate the Judo room and thus contribute to the encouragement of Judo players and to maintain a strong link between young people and society through sport. Through this project, many interested children, young people and adults (more than 300 people) will be able to practice Judo in the larger and more adapted room.
The cooperation between Tunisia and Japan in Judo started in 1962 when the diplomat Mr. Mounir Slama, member of the Tunisian Embassy in Japan, joined the Kodokan (Judo Institute). So far, 15 Japanese Kodokan coaches and JICA volunteers have taught this discipline in Tunisia. Thus, many Tunisian players have participated in tournaments and training in Japan. In 2019, a weight room and Judo uniforms were made available to the Tunisian Judo Federation.
Thanks to these achievements and the efforts of the athletes, Tunisia has won many medals at international competitions in Africa and the Middle East. At last year’s African Championship, Tunisia won a total of 14 medals, leading the participating countries. It is hoped that this project will raise even higher the good level of Judo in Tunisia.
In 2021, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games took place and many Tunisian athletes participated. Today, the provision of minibuses for the Paralympic Committee and continued cooperation with the host city of the Olympic and Paralympic Games are still encouraged.
Japan has supported other sports projects, such as the construction of an indoor handball hall and a basketball hall. Sports exchanges are also done through, for example, the donation of Kendo equipment to the Kendo Sports Association.
