Saskatoon senior competing at 2023 judo world championship veterans

A 74-year-old Saskatoon man is competing in the judo world championship veterans on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Born and raised in Chile, Ralph Ibanez, who has been involved in the martial art of judo for 57 years, says it has been a passion of his for most of his life.

He said he first learned of judo in his youth by reading a copy of Reader's Digest magazine.

"I was fascinated by the idea of judo and I asked my parents, but we were pretty poor, and my mom said 'no, we can't afford that,'" said Ibanez.

The competition has categories from 40 to 80 years old, with each division being separated by 10 year age brackets. Ibanez is in the oldest category, but has previously won six veteran world titles and multiple medals. 

This year's championships has 1,054 competitors from 65 different countries, according to the International Judo Federation.

Originating in Japan in 1882, judo became an Olympic sport in 1964. The sport incorporates throwing, tripping, choking and striking an opponent. In competition, two athletes bow and then grapple with the intended goal of gaining points by pinning the opponent on their back for 20 seconds or choking them until they tap to the submission. 

Ibanez said that judo doesn't only take physical strength, but mental strength as well. 

"It's like playing chess," he said. "You find a problem and you look for a solution and then you solve it."

Ibanez described himself as a pacifist and non-aggressive, saying he is most interested in the technical aspect of the martial art.

In high school, Ibanez said friends of his told him they knew a marine who could teach them judo, so he took them up on that offer.

"I started doing judo in the background, behind my parents back."

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