The Iran judo federation’s appeal against a four-year ban from international events for refusing to let its athletes face opponents from Israel was heard on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport said the Iranian appeal against an International Judo Federation (IJF) ruling was held by video link and a verdict is expected to take at least several weeks.
The International Judo Federation imposed the four-year ban on Iran after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered a disciplinary review which said a previous indefinite ban was not allowed.
The IJF ban — backdated to start in 2019 and run into September 2023 — is provisional and can be lifted if the Iranian judo federation respects its rules on discrimination and accepts to compete with Israel.
The IJF ban was announced initially after Iran forced former world champion Saeid Mollaei to throw a match against Israelis, even though the IJF and Iran reached an agreement which stipulates that Iran will no longer boycott competitions against Israelis.
Mollaei later travelled to Germany to begin the process of applying for asylum. He was recognized as a refugee in Germany in November of 2019 and recently won a silver medal at the Tel Aviv Grand Slam, where he represented Mongolia.