STORY: Athletes at Abidjan African Open 2024 eye Olympic medals
SHOOTING TIME: June 7, 2024
DATELINE: June 8, 2024
LENGTH: 00:06:30
LOCATION: ABIDJAN, Cote d'Ivoire
CATEGORY: SPORTS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Abidjan African Open 2024
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (French): ARNAUD MALLEY, Organizer
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (French): ABOUBACAR N'GOM, Chief Director of Refereeing of the African Judo Union
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (French): JEROME ZELMAN, Ivorian athlete
5. SOUNDBITE 4 (French): YOANE NGAE, Cameroonian athlete

STORYLINE:

The second edition of the Abidjan African Open has brought together around 400 athletes from 40 African countries to celebrate African judo since Thursday in Abidjan.

The four-day competition is divided into two parts for African athletes of the African Judo Union aged 15 to 20 and international athletes respectively.

SOUNDBITE 1 (French): ARNAUD MALLEY, Organizer
"I think judo is facing many challenges at the moment. But the overall level is good and there are enough reserve forces. The national team coach and I are very satisfied with this competition. Today's winners are the real reserve forces of our judo federation. It is because of them that we are looking forward to the 2028 Olympics even more."

SOUNDBITE 2 (French): ABOUBACAR N'GOM, Chief Director of Refereeing of the African Judo Union
"The objective is to raise the quality of the competitions. This is the work assigned to us by the president of the African Judo Union. It was about raising the level of African judo and the quality of our athletes.
I think that today we have many athletes who are qualified for Paris 2024. We are also waiting for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics and finally Los Angeles 2028.
It is something magnificent and what we have seen here with the cadet, junior and senior athletes from Friday and Saturday, we are sure that Africa will have champions. We are going to win Olympic medals and that is a good thing for Africa."

SOUNDBITE 3 (French): JEROME ZELMAN, Ivorian athlete
"I feel very proud today because it is not every day that we get to play at home. It was very important to win the game, which proves that Ivorians are capable of playing all kinds of sports.
Just like football players, we can also show our strength to the world through judo. But today's match was not easy because my opponents were also Ivorians. Facing opponents we knew well and even teammates we trained with, I felt a lot of pressure. When I learned that I was welcomed by everyone in my hometown, I felt even more pressured.
The 2028 Olympics is a goal in my mind, as is the next World Judo Championships."

SOUNDBITE 4 (French): YOANE NGAE, Cameroonian athlete
"The level of this competition here in Abidjan was very high. I really had a lot of difficulty in winning this gold medal. I found the competition to be very good. There was a lot of rivalry in my category but I managed to win the gold medal.
My opponents were very strong. They made several attacks. There were even new techniques that I discovered here in Abidjan. I really appreciated this."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire.
(XHTV)