El Shehaby was met with a chorus of boos from the audience when he chose to back away and shake his head when his rival, Or Sasson, extended his hand in a gesture of goodwill, according to the Daily Mail.
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In a statement issued to explain the situation, the Committee said that El-Shehabi was “alerted before the match to abide by all the rules and to have a sporting spirit during his match with the Israeli athlete”.
Bowing or shaking hands is a traditional sign of respect in the Japanese martial art, and the referee called El Shehaby back to the mat after he brushed off Sasson’s gesture.
The countries maintain secretive ties but public relations are widely condemned in Egypt if officials are seen to be hobnobbing with Israeli officials.
Afterwards, El Shehaby, who is competing in his third Olympic Games, refused to comment.
El Shehaby was reportedly pressured before the Games from Islamist activists in Egypt to withdraw from the first-round heavyweight bout against Sasson. “There’s absolutely no excuse for it”, a spokesman said.
Fans in the stadium booed El Shehaby’s refusal, which has been interpreted as both signs of a sore loser and something bigger and more political. When El Shehaby lost by default after being thrown twice, he can be seen backing off when Sasson approaches to shake his hand.
Sasson subsequently won the bronze medal Friday evening after defeating Alex Maxell Garcia Mendoza of Cuba in the men’s judo over-100 kilogram competition.
Spokesman Nicolas Messner said judokas were under no obligation to shake hands, but bowing is compulsory.
An Egyptian judoka refused the customary post-match handshake with an Israeli competitor Friday.
Joud Fahmy of Saudi Arabia also forfeited a first-round judo match Sunday in what the Israeli press said was an attempt to avoid facing Israel’s Gili Cohen in the second round, the Times reported.
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“The delegation doesn’t allow mixing politics with sports”.
