The Ju-Jitsu International Federation -JJIF- brought together athletes from different generations in Zadar for the 2026 World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championships. Held on 22 August at the city’s Sports Center Višnjik, the competition included U21, adult and masters divisions within a single day and awarded points towards the federation’s international ranking.
In a separate matter nine days later, the International Testing Agency -ITA-, which independently manages the JJIF anti-doping programme, notified Kuwaiti athlete Amer Alhajri of an adverse analytical finding from the Asian Championships. The case is entirely unrelated to the World Championships in Zadar, but shows how the JJIF’s expanding competition programme operates alongside an external system for testing and results management.
Three divisions in Zadar
The World No-Gi Championships were organised by the Croatian Ju-Jitsu Federation with support from the JJIF event team and officials. Its recognition as an international ranking event meant that the results counted towards the federation’s ranking system. Participants competed under version 2.8 of the JJIF Jiu-Jitsu Rules and version 1.2 of its Sporting Code, while also being required to comply with the organisation’s Code of Ethics.
Bringing together U21, adult and masters divisions allowed emerging athletes and experienced competitors to share the same World Championship environment. The JJIF presented the event as another step in the development of No-Gi, a discipline in which athletes compete without the traditional ‘gi’. Like the federation’s other international events, the competition was also subject to the JJIF Anti-Doping Rules and the World Anti-Doping Code.
A procedure that remains open
Alhajri’s case concerns a sample collected in competition on 17 July during the 2026 Asian Championships. The analysis detected metabolites of drostanolone and tamoxifen, as well as 19-norandrosterone and anastrozole. Drostanolone and the presence of 19-norandrosterone fall under section S1.1 on anabolic androgenic steroids, while anastrozole is listed under S4.1 as an aromatase inhibitor and tamoxifen under S4.2 as an anti-oestrogenic substance.
All four are prohibited both in and out of competition by the World Anti-Doping Agency -WADA-, although they are not classified in the same way: substances under S1.1 are non-Specified Substances, while those listed under S4.1 and S4.2 are Specified Substances. Alhajri has the right to request analysis of the B-sample and provide explanations for the result. If he does not request that analysis, or if it confirms the A-sample finding, the proceedings will continue as a confirmed anti-doping rule violation.
Independent management since 2019
The athlete has been placed under a mandatory provisional suspension in accordance with the World Anti-Doping Code and Article 7.4.1 of the JJIF Anti-Doping Rules. The measure does not yet constitute a final sanction, and Alhajri retains the right to challenge it and request that it be lifted. The outcome will depend on the subsequent stages of results management and any explanations he provides.
The ITA has supported the JJIF in delivering its anti-doping programme since January 2019. The federation has delegated a number of functions to the agency, which will handle the case in its entirety, including the B-sample process if requested and any subsequent determination of consequences. No definitive violation or sanction can be established until the procedure has been completed, while the provisional suspension will remain in place unless a challenge against it succeeds.
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