Switzerland hosts a Grand Slam for the first time. Some 513 judoka from 77 nations will be competing (305 men and 208 women), with five reigning world No. 1’s on the list. Although this is the first Grand Slam in Lausanne, the city itself is not new to championship judo. Lausanne staged the European Championships and the European Team Championships in 1968, and five years later it hosted the 1973 World Championships.
Most anticipated comeback: Agbegnenou (FRA)
Six-time World Champion and Olympic Champion Clarisse Agbegnenou of France makes her comeback here, unseeded as her ranking is 65. Agbegnenou ruled the -63kg division from 2014 to 2023 with a run of world titles that has no equal in the category. Her last major medal was European silver in 2025.
Home favorite: Fohouo (SUI)
April Lynn Fohouo in the -70kg category is the only seeded Swiss judoka of the tournament. She is ranked World No. 9, and at 20 years of age, is the youngest member of the team. She was a European Junior Champion 2024 and a World Junior Champion 2025. Her senior breakthrough came faster than anyone anticipated. She got a silver in the Paris Grand Slam and Linz Grand Prix this year. In a -70kg category of 36, the largest women's field of the tournament, Fohouo arrives at her home Grand Slam as a realistic podium contender.
Oldest seeded contender: Laborde (USA)
Maria Celia Laborde, at 36, has the distinction of being the oldest ranked player in this competition. Laborde is ranked 6th in the world, and seeded 5th, which makes her a genuine contender rather than a curiosity. The oldest Grand Slam winner in the history of the series is Audrey Tcheumeo of France, who won gold in Tbilisi earlier this year at the age of 35. If Laborde wins gold in Lausanne she becomes the oldest Grand Slam champion the series has had.
(Facts and statistics courtesy of JudoInside).
