8/12/2016 8:46 AM PDT BY TMZ STAFF
Breaking News
An Egyptian judo fighter refused to shake the hand of his Israeli opponent after losing a 100kg match Friday at the Olympics in Rio.
The Egyptian is Islam El Shehaby — who was defeated with about 90 seconds left in the match when his opponent Or Sasson completed a dominating 2nd takedown.
After the match, Sasson approached El Shehaby to shake his hand — customary in Judo matches — but El Shehaby refused.
People in the crowd reportedly booed.
It’s unclear why El Shehaby refused the handshake — he could have been pissed from losing — but there are reports that it was more politically motivated.
Some powerful Egyptians had called for El Shehaby to withdraw from the fight in the first place to avoid having to compete with an Israeli opponent.
#Israel Sasson beats Egyptian Islam El Shehaby in 1st rnd #judo event. Egyptian then refuses to shake his hand. pic.twitter.com/WRQ1Gpd29m
— Stanislaw (@stas8t) August 12, 2016
