COMPETITION DATES
28 July 28 to 3 August.

STAR NAME
Teddy Riner: At 6ft 8in and the best part of 22 stones, you cannot miss the French heavyweight. The gentle giant - nicknamed "Teddy Bear" - became the youngest world champion in the history of judo aged 18 years and five months and went on hold the record of six world titles when adding the team gold to his over-100 kilograms crown in Paris last summer. In the under-81kg, Korean Kim Jae-bum and Brazil's Leandro Guilheiro will be out to deny leading British fighter Euan Burton a place on the podium. Elsewhere in the women's under-63kg, Yoshie Ueno will be seeking to emulate her elder sister Masae,
gold medallist in Beijing, by adding Olympic success to her 2010 world title.

GREATEST OLYMPIAN
Tadahiro Nomura: The Japanese, now 38, is the only fighter to have won three successive Olympic gold medals, all in the extra-lightweight under-60kg division from the 1996 Games in Atlanta through Sydney and Athens. Female judoka Ayumi Tanimoto, also of Japan, claimed under-63kg gold at the Athens Olympics in 2004 and again in Beijing four years ago.

BIGGEST FLOP
Craig Fallon: A black belt aged just 15, the Briton headed into the 2004 Athens Games as both world and European under-60kg champion. However, the Wolverhampton fighter crashed out in his second bout and despite qualifying again for the 2008 Olympic Games, suffered a similar fate as he failed to make the medal fights again. Fallon, now 29, took a sabbatical from the sport before returning at a higher weight to try to make the London 2012 squad, but earlier this year retired to coaching.

DID YOU KNOW?
The term "Ju-do" means "the way of suppleness" or "the gentle way", but Japan's fighters will be facing a fierce battle to get themselves back to the top of the Olympic medal table, with the seven won at the last Games in Beijing - including four gold - their smallest haul since women's judo was added to the 1992 Olympic schedule.

FIRST APPEARANCE AT THE GAMES
Tokyo 1964 (men), Seoul 1998 (women, demonstration), Barcelona 1992 (women, medals)