Two years ago, Fethi Nourine of Algeria pulled out of the 2019 Judoka World Championships when his draw lined him up against Israeli Tohar Butbul.
History repeats itself, this time at the Tokyo Olympics.
The draw for the -73kg men’s division potentially set up a matchup between the ninth-ranked Nourine and No. 6 Butbul in the second round. So Nourine, once again, withdrew from competition.
