Jeannine Meulemans (VJF) and the "Ligue Francophone de Judo", acting under the Belgian Judo Federation umbrella. The exams were held in Etterbeek (ESC), Brussels, before a national jury consisting of Jean-Marie Falise, Marcel Clause, Marcel Degroote, and presided by Abe Ichirō, 8th dan from the Kōdōkan in Japan. At that occasion she was praised by Abe Ichirō, for obtaining the highest score among all candidates irrespective of gender. In 1983 Meulemans retired from competitive judo after winning her 10th successive national title, though at club level she continued to remain for years a technically inspiring judo training partner to Sonja Maes and
Paralympic Judo Paralympic Judo Paralympic judo is an adaptation of the Japanese martial art of judo for visually impaired competitors. The rules of the sport are only slightly different from regular judo competitions. It has been part of the Summer Paralympics program since 1988 for men and 2004 for women. Paralympic judo competition is governed by the International Judo Federation (IJF) rules with some modifications specified by the International Blind Sports Association (IBSA). The major rule difference is that contests always start with the 2 competitors in a loose grip on each other's Judo suits (grip called "Kumikata") and if contact is