Athletes shall receive classification and points on the Senior national roster based on their finishes in various national and international events as indicated in the table given below.

Summary of the system

• Athletes who medal in A+ level events will earn A+ level classification.
• Athletes who medal in A level events, will earn A level classification.
• Similarly for other level events.
• In events where 5th place is recognized by USA Judo protocol, athletes will be classified one level below the event classification, i.e. 5th place in a B level event will earn C level classification.
• In E-level events, classification and points are earned in the highest senior-level divisions at those events, in weight categories that are tracked by USA Judo.
• Athletes must win at least one match (no byes, no walkovers) in order to obtain senior points.
• Ties will be broken through the tie break criteria.
• Both Points and Classification earned at a particular event are current for a maximum of one year, or on anniversary date of that event (if a regularly scheduled annual event) if its anniversary occurs in less than a year.
• All athletes requesting to compete in a B-Level event outside of North America must be ranked on the USA Judo Senior Elite National Roster or have approval from the USA Judo High Performance Committee. 

• As a clarification on the interpretation of the rules regarding E-Level points, effective Nov. 28, 2006, athletes may have a total of no more than TWO "E" level points on the USA Judo Senior Elite National Roster at any single point in time. Should an athlete compete in the same division at additional "E" level events after he or she already HAS 2 "E" level points, new points earned will be added to the roster and the earliest "E" level points will be removed so that the total never exceeds TWO total "E" level points.  If an athlete earns no more than two points during a 365-day period, all points will expire naturally per the USA Judo point classification guidelines. 

• Change to Puerto Rico and Irish Open Point Classification

  Effective June 1, 2007, the Irish Open in Dublin (held annually in October) and the Puerto Rico Open in Salinas (held annually in April) will no longer be USA Judo point tournaments in the Tournament Not Listed or any other category.

• Change to Collegiate Nationals and Ladder Tournament Point Classification

  Effective December 28, 2007, neither the Collegiate Nationals nor the Ladder Tournament will be listed as USA Judo Senior E Level Tournaments. 

• As a clarification, please note that athletes who place fourth in a round robin division will receive third place points on the appropriate roster as long as the athlete wins at least one match, per above.
• In order to receive a ranking on the USA Judo Senior Elite National Roster, an athlete must be eligible to represent the United States in Olympic or World Championship competition.

• Change to Change to El Salvador Point Classification

  Effective May 17, 2008, neither the Juan Carlos Vargas Cup nor the Yanira Ramos      

  Vigil Cup will be USA Judo point tournaments in the Tournament Not Listed or any other  category

• Changes to Junior and Senior Elite National Roster Point Structure (Effective Sept. 25, 2008)

  1. Both the Jose Ramon Rodriguez and Golden Judoguis Championships will be listed as USA Judo Senior C-Level Point Tournaments.  Accordingly, juniors competing in these events will receive 15 points on the appropriate junior elite national rosters for a gold medal, nine for a silver, six for a bronze and three for a fifth place finish at either of these events. 

  2. The Jigoro Kano Cup will be listed as a USA Judo Senior A-Level Point Tournament.  Accordingly, juniors competing in these events will receive 17.5 points on the appropriate junior elite national rosters for a gold medal, 10.5 for a silver, seven for a bronze and 3.5 for a fifth place finish at this event.

  3. Athletes requesting to compete in an A-Level or higher event must be ranked on the USA Judo Senior Elite National Roster with at least a B Level or be the current USA Judo Senior National Champion.  All rankings must be held in the division in which the athlete is seeking to compete.  Athletes requesting to compete in A-Level or higher tournaments and who do not meet these criteria must have approval from the USA Judo High Performance Committee.

  4. Athletes may have a total of no more than six D-Level or Tournaments Not Listed points with a D-Level value on the USA Judo Senior Elite National Roster at any single point in time. Should an athlete compete in the same division at additional D-Level events after he or she already HAS six D-Level points, new points earned will be added to the roster and the earliest D-Level points will be removed so that the total never exceeds six total D-Level points.  If an athlete earns no more than six points during a 365-day period, all points will expire naturally per the USA Judo point classification guidelines. 

  5. The first criterion for breaking ties on the USA Judo Senior Elite National roster shall be as follows:

  The athlete with the most C-Level or higher international points as reflected from the current USA Judo Ranking roster.

  6.  Both Points and Classification earned at a particular event are current for a maximum of one year, or on anniversary date of that event (if a regularly scheduled annual event) if its anniversary occurs in less than a year. 

  If any of the following regularly scheduled annual events are held within 30 days of the anniversary date, the points and classification earned from that event will remain on the roster until the following year’s event: 

  • USA Judo Senior National Championships
  • U.S. Open
  • USA Judo National Junior Olympic Championships
  • USA Judo Youth and Scholastic National Championships
  • USA Judo President’s Cup
  • Junior U.S. Open

• Changes to Junior and Senior Elite National Roster Point Structure (Effective Nov. 7, 2008)

         1. The German International and Rotterdam Super World Cup tournaments were removed from the A+ category. The German International is now a Grand Prix event and is now listed as an A-Level tournament. The Rotterdam Super World Cup has been removed from the IJF Calendar.
         2. All IJF Grand Slam Tournaments are ranked as A+ Level Point Tournaments.
         3. The IJF Masters Championships (MC) has been added as an A+ Level Point Tournament.
         4. All IJF Grand Prix Tournaments are ranked as A-Level Point Tournaments.
         5. Due to the change in the IJF qualifying structure for the 2012 Olympic Games, all Pan American Championships are B-Level Point Tournaments.
         6. The USA Judo President’s Cup is a C-Level Point Tournament.
         7. The USA Judo Fall Classic National Championships is no longer an event and has been removed from the point matrix.