Tajikistan Olympian refuses to shake Israeli athlete’s hand, yells ‘Allah Akbar' during Judo competition
Nurali Emomali of Tajikistan's arm was seriously injured in a match with Hifumi Abe, in what social media users are calling 'karma' for bad sportsmanship.
A Judo competitor at the Paris Olympics refused to shake his Israeli competitor's hand after the match, as is customary, and was hit with immediate karma, according to X users.
Judoka Nurali Emomali of Tajikistan refused to shake hands with his Israeli opponent, Tohar Butbul, following their match in the round of 16 Sunday. Emomali, who won the match, chose to walk off the mat without the customary post-match gesture.
Before he left the mat, X users pointed out that he said, "Allahu Akbar" while holding up a prayer symbol, known as the "Finger of Tawheed", which refers to the Islamic belief that "There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His prophet."
Shortly after, Emomali competed against Japanese Olympian Hifumi Abe, which ended in a brutal fashion. At the end of the match, Abe slammed Emomali to the ground. Emomali reached his left arm towards the ground, but the force of the fall, and the weight of Abe, caused his arm to bend and dislocate.
Emomali had to be carried out by Olympic staff members due to the severity of his injury.
Social media users called it instant karma for bad sportsmanship for refusing to shake hands with his opponent in the prior match.
"Bad sport Nurali Emomali from Tajikistan refused to shake hands with Israeli judo competitor Baruch Shmailov and shouted ‘Allah Akbar.’ Emomali ended up with a dislocated shoulder crying on the mat. Olympic levels of karma," said Michael Dickinson, the executive director of the pro-Israel group StandWithUs.
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"Karma is a b---h," said Emily Schrader, a pro-Israel influencer.
The Israeli judoka, Butbul, is advancing to another round Monday after an Algerian opponent, Messaoud Redouane Dris, dropped out of the competition, the Times of Israel reported.