The IJF Athletes' Commission ran its first dedicated booth at the Baku World Championships, an initiative its chair, Kim Polling, describes as a door athletes can walk through directly. Polling retired from competition in 2025 and now leads the commission, with athlete feedback, referee and rules communication and mental-health support among its priorities.
The booth also built up the commission's direct channels: a Telegram channel launched in January and a WhatsApp channel followed last month. Polling said the two gained around 60 to 70 followers during the championships and are now approaching 800 members, adding that they are not restricted to athletes — coaches and team officials can join as well.
An anonymous feedback form collected ideas and questions. One proposal was an IJF Youth Athlete Development and Mentorship Programme connecting young judoka with experienced international athletes, which Polling said was worth exploring further. A more practical case also came through: athletes reported that the adhesive used for sponsor stickers on judogi backnumbers was hard to remove and left residue, so the commission contacted the Sport Commission and the supplier, and testing identified a professional adhesive remover that clears the residue without marking or damaging the fabric.
