Raz Hershko

Raz Hershko
Personal information
Native nameרז הרשקו‎
NicknameHershkules Edit this on Wikidata
NationalityIsrael
Born (1998-06-19) 19 June 1998 (age 26)
Netanya, Israel
OccupationJudoka
Sport
Country Israel
SportJudo
Weight class+78 kg
Rank     3rd dan black belt[1]
Coached byShani Hershko, Miki Tanaka, and Ido Bar[2]
Achievements and titles
Olympic GamesSilver (2024)
World Champ.Bronze (2023)
European Champ.Gold (2024)
Highest world ranking1st[3][4]
Medal record
Women's judo
Representing  Israel
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Tokyo Mixed team
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Tashkent Mixed team
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Doha +78 kg
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Zagreb +78 kg
Silver medal – second place 2022 Sofia +78 kg
Silver medal – second place 2023 Montpellier +78 kg
World Masters
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Jerusalem +78 kg
IJF Grand Slam
Gold medal – first place 2021 Antalya +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2021 Paris +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2022 Ulaanbaatar +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2023 Tel Aviv +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2023 Tbilisi +78 kg
Silver medal – second place 2022 Antalya +78 kg
Silver medal – second place 2023 Ulaanbaatar +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Baku +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Abu Dhabi +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Tel Aviv +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Budapest +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Baku +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Tokyo +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris +78 kg
IJF Grand Prix
Gold medal – first place 2022 Zagreb +78 kg
Silver medal – second place 2019 Montreal +78 kg
European U23 Championships
Silver medal – second place 2017 Podgorica +78 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Győr +78 kg
European Cadet Championships
Gold medal – first place 2015 Sofia +70 kg
European Youth Olympic Festival
Silver medal – second place 2015 Tbilisi +70 kg
Profile at external databases
IJF13713
JudoInside.com73001
Updated on 2 August 2024

Raz Hershko (Hebrew: רז הרשקו; born 19 June 1998; nicknamed Hershkules)[5] is an Israeli Olympic silver medalist and European champion judoka. She was the 2015 European U18 Champion, the 2017 European U23 championships silver medalist, and won a bronze medal in the 2023 world championships. She competed for Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics, winning a bronze medal in mixed team. She is the 2024 European Champion. Representing Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Hershko won the silver medal in judo in the women's +78 kg, and also competed in the mixed team event, in which Team Israel came in ninth.

Early life

Herhsko was born in Netanya, Israel, and is Jewish.[6] Her uncle is Israeli-born former judoka and current Head Coach of the Israel women's national judo team Shani Hershko (he), and when she was four years old she joined the judo club he had founded.[7][2] In 2016, she began her Israeli Defense Forces service as an exceptional athlete.[2]

Hershko is openly lesbian.[8][9][10][11] She said: "I came out to my parents, and now I feel that everyone accepts me as I am."[2]

Career

Hershko competes in the 78 kg-and-over weight category.[7] She is coached by Shani Hershko, Miki Tanaka, and Ido Bar.[2] Hershko trains at the Wingate Institute in Netanya, Israel.[2]

2014–16; European U18 Champion

Hershko won the silver medal in the 2014 European Cup U21 Coimbra, and bronze medals in the 2014 European Cup U21 Thessaloniki and the 2014 European Cup U21 La Coruna.[7] She won the gold medal in the 2014 Israeli U18 Championships in Ra'anana.[7]

Hershko won the 2015 European U18 Judo Championships in Sofia.[12][13][14] She also won silver medals at the 2015 European Youth Summer Olympic Festival, the 2015 European Cup U21 La Coruna, and the 2015 European Cup Cadets Fuengirola.[15][16] She won the silver medal in the 2015 Israeli Championships in Ra'anana.[7]

She won the gold medals at the 2016 European Cup U21 Athens and the 2016 European Cup U21 Ploiesti.[7] Hershko also won a bronze medal at the 2016 European Cup U21 La Coruna.[7] She won the gold medal at the 2016 Israeli U21 Championships in Ra'anana.[7]

2017–20; European U23 championships silver medal

Hershko won a silver medal at the 2017 European U23 Championships in Podgorica, Montenegro,[17][18][19][20] and a bronze at the 2018 European U23 Championships in Gyor, Hungary.[21][22][23][24] She won the gold medal in the 2018 European Cup Malaga, Spain.[7] She won the silver medal in the 2017 Israeli Championships in Ra'anana.[7]

She won the gold medal in the 2018 Israeli Championships in Tel Aviv.[7]

At the 2019 Grand Prix Montreal in Canada, Hershko won a silver medal, and at the 2019 European Open Cluj Napoca in Romania she won a bronze medal.[7] She won the gold medal in the 2019 Israeli Championships in Tel Aviv.[7] In November 2020, she had elbow surgery.[2]

2020 Tokyo Olympics (in 2021); bronze medal

Hershko represented Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in 2021, competing at the women's +78 kg weight category. Hershko won her first match with an ippon against the Saudi Tahani Alqahtani in 42 seconds, advancing to the round of 16.[2] There, she met the 2019 world champion – Japan's Akira Sone. Hershko lost to Sone, ending her part in the individual competition.[25][26][27][28] She won an Olympic bronze medal in the mixed team.[7]

2021–present; European Champion, and world championship bronze medal

Hershko won the gold medals at the 2021 Antalya Grand Slam in Turkey and the 2021 Judo Grand Slam Paris in France.[7][29][30] She also won bronze medals at the 2021 Judo Grand Slam Baku and the 2021 Judo Grand Slam Abu Dhabi.[7]

Hershko won the silver medal at the 2022 European Judo Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.[7] She also won gold medals at the 2022 Judo Grand Slam Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia and the 2022 Judo Grand Prix Zagreb in Croatia.[7] She won a silver medal at the 2022 Judo Grand Slam Antalya in Turkey, and bronze medals at the 2022 Judo World Masters in Jerusalem, Israel, the 2022 Tel Aviv Grand Slam in Israel, and the 2022 Judo Grand Slam Budapest in Hungary.[31][7]

Hershko won a bronze medal at the 2023 World Judo Championships in Doha, Qatar.[7] She won the silver medal at the 2023 European Judo Championships in Montpellier, France.[7] She won gold medals at the 2023 Judo Grand Slam Tel Aviv in Israel and the 2023 Judo Grand Slam Tbilisi in Georgia, a silver medal at the 2023 Judo Grand Slam Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, and bronze medals at the 2023 Judo Grand Slam Baku and the 2023 Judo Grand Slam Tokyo.[7] She won the gold medal in the 2023 Israeli Championships.[7]

Hershko won the gold medal at the 2024 European Judo Championships in Zagreb, Croatia.[7] She dedicated her medal to Israeli Yonatan Goutin, who was killed by Hamas terrorists in the October 7 attack on Kibbutz Be'eri in the Be'eri massacre.[32] She won a bronze medal at the 2024 Judo Grand Slam Paris in France.[7]

2024 Paris Olympics; Silver medal

Representing Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Hershko won the silver medal in judo in the women's +78 kg.[33][7] She defeated Marit Kamps of the Netherlands, Milica Žabić of Serbia, former two-time European champion Kayra Özdemir of Turkey (in 14 seconds), and then lost in the final to five-time Pan American champion Beatriz Souza of Brazil.[34] She also competed in the mixed team event, in which Team Israel came in ninth.[35] She said:

Since October 7 [the date of the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel], I feel the extra need to not only succeed for myself but I want to succeed for the entire country.,,, The medal isn’t just for me but for all of us. I wanted to represent our flag the best way that I could, and show what type of country we are during these very tough times.[34]

Titles

Source:[36][7]

Year Tournament Place Ref.
2019 Grand Prix Montreal 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [37][38]
2021 Grand Slam Antalya 1st place, gold medalist(s) [29][30]
Grand Slam Paris 1st place, gold medalist(s) [39][40][41]
Grand Slam Baku 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [42][43]
Grand Slam Abu Dhabi 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [44][45][46]
2022 Grand Slam Tel Aviv 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [47][48][49]
Grand Slam Antalya 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [50][51][52]
European Championships 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [53][54][55]
Grand Slam Ulaanbaatar 1st place, gold medalist(s) [56][57][58]
Grand Slam Budapest 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [59][60][61]
Grand Prix Zagreb 1st place, gold medalist(s) [62][63][64]
World Masters 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [65][66][67]
2023 Grand Slam Tel Aviv 1st place, gold medalist(s) [68][69][70]
Grand Slam Tbilisi 1st place, gold medalist(s) [71][72][73]
World Championships 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [74][75][76]
Grand Slam Ulaanbaatar 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [77][78][79]
European Championships 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [80][81][82]
Grand Slam Tokyo 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [83][84][85]
2024 Grand Slam Paris 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [86][87][88]
European Championships 1st place, gold medalist(s) [89][90][91]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Association board meeting protocol 23 May 2023" (PDF). Israel Judo Association (in Hebrew). 23 May 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Shir Ziv (August 27, 2021). "'Olympic medal signifies my victory in battles fought on and off the mat,'" Israel HaYom.
  3. ^ "IJF World Ranking List" (PDF). International Judo Federation. 25 July 2022. p. 49. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  4. ^ "World Ranking List, Women –+78 kg". International Judo Federation. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  5. ^ Itamar Katzir (April 19, 2021). "Once Bullied for Her Weight, This Israeli Judoka Is Heading to the Olympics; Her path to the Games has been paved with hurdles, starting at adolescence and continuing with the choice of a tough weight category. Now Raz Hershko, aka 'Hershkules,' just won her first gold in a Grand Slam event," Haaretz.
  6. ^ Jacob Gurvis (August 8, 2024). "All the Jewish Medalists at the 2024 Paris Olympics,"
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa "Raz Hershko". JudoInside. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  8. ^ "Olympic Rankings If The Record Number Of LGBTQ Athletes Were A Team Now: 7th In Gold Medals, 8th Overall. - Page 3 Of 6". Towleroad Gay News. 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  9. ^ Dan Bram (June 3, 2024). "Monica Sereda - More LGBT Athletes in the Olympic and Paralympic Games,", Daily Choices.
  10. ^ Heather Cassell (June 14, 2023). "Out in the World: Breed meets with LGBTQ leaders in Israel," Bay Area Reporter.
  11. ^ "At least 186 out LGBTQ athletes at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, by far a record; There were more out LGBTQ athletes in Tokyo than all the previous Summer Olympics combined. Here’s the list," Outsports, July 12, 2021.
  12. ^ "2015 European U18 Championships". International Judo Federation. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
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  31. ^ Lloyd, Owen (19 February 2022). "Dicko cements France's place at top of Tel Aviv Grand Slam medals table". InsideTheGames.biz. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  32. ^ Nina Fox (April 28, 2024). "Raz Hershko dedicates gold medal to fallen IDF office; Israeli Judoka and new European champion devotes her victory to Lieutenant Yonatan Goutin, who was killed fighting against Hamas terrorists on October 7," Ynet.
  33. ^ "Israel's Raz Hershko takes Women's Judo heavyweight silver medal at the Olympics". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2 August 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  34. ^ a b "Israel's silver Olympian Raz Hershko tells 'Post' of Paris success," The Jerusalem Post.
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