Judoka banned for life after beating in Bundesliga

Outcry after fight in Leipzig Judoka banned for life after beating in the Bundesliga

The outburst of anger in which he broke his opponent's jaw now has serious consequences for Akaki Japaridze: the Georgian will never be allowed to compete in the Judo Bundesliga again.

The Judo Bundesliga has banned Akaki Japaridze for life after his attack on German judoka Timo Cavelius. The 24-year-old Georgian will never again be allowed to register for or fight for a club in the top division of the German Judo Federation (DJB).

There are also proceedings against Japaridze before the Georgian Judo Association, the World Judo Federation IJF and criminal proceedings in Germany.

At the beginning of September, Japaridze competed as a guest fighter for JC Leipzig and beat his opponent Timo Cavelius, 29, from TSV Abensberg, who was hospitalized after the fight.

During the attack he broke Cavelius' jaw. The German Olympic starter will therefore miss the World Championships in Baku. After the incident, the Leipzig police began investigations on suspicion of bodily harm.

Japaridze blamed victims for the attack

Japaridze then said on Instagram that he was not shirking responsibility for what happened. At the same time, he wrote that the incident was “not the result of emotions” triggered by the sporting defeat. He referred to his opponent's defamatory behavior.

The DJB commented on Japaridze's statement with the words: "We cannot tolerate or even defend this serious physical injury and are incompatible with the basic principles of our sport."

After the decision, Japaridze's victory in the first leg against Cavelius will also be considered a defeat. The team fight between JC Leipzig and TSV Abensberg is finally rated 7:7 with an underrating of 62:57.