Sasson and Cuba’s Alex Maxell Garcia Mendoza fought a close tussle for the bronze, with no decisive moves, with Sasson prevailing by dint of fewer penalties.
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Sasson defeated El Shehaby with two throws for an automatic victory, with about a minute and a half remaining in the bout.
El Shehaby chose to compete anyway, but he couldn’t bring himself to engage in basic sporting etiquette afterward.
Having been taught that one of the first principles of judo was to respect one’s opponent, Sasson said it was “a little bit weird” that El Shehaby declined to shake his hand, although the gesture didn’t affect him.
“Egyptian Judoka Islam Shihabi refuses to shake hands w/ Israeli Or Sasson, goes against spirit of #Rio2016”, read the tweet. “Politics doesn’t matter when I’m on the mat”. El Shehaby walks off but is then called back to the floor to give the required bow as the crowd boos. In Friday’s match, no points were scored by either side, but Sasson won over a penalty call.
Israeli bronze medalist Or Sasson celebrates on the podium of the men’s +100kg judo contest of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on August 12, 2016.
“I knew there was a chance he would not shake my hand”, said Sasson, who was fighting El Shehaby for the first time.
But, according to the Daily Mail, the International Judo Federation also maintained that the fact the fight even occurred was actually a sign of progress.
“This is already a big improvement that Arabic countries accept to [fight] Israel”, said a spokesman. The competitors were under no obligation to shake hands, but a bow is mandatory, he added.
Saudi judoka Joud Fahmy reportedly forfeited her first match at the games to avoid facing an Israeli opponent in the next round.
“What the player did after the match, and not shaking hands with his rival, is a personal action”, the committee said in a statement.
El-Shehaby received pressure from Muslims not to fight against the Israeli, but the EOC threatened to strip him of his citizenship if he withdrew.
Israel is seen as an enemy nation in many Arab countries.
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TV host Mataz Matar had said: “Egypt will cry”.
