1-Year Prevalence and Factors Related to Injuries and Illnesses in Japanese Judo Collegiate Athletes

Despite its rich history and widespread participation, the research surrounding injuries and illness in judo remains relatively limited compared to other sports. The primary aim of this research was to investigate injuries and illness within a previous year in Japanese collegiate judo athletes and analyze possible factors associated with these. This was a cross-sectional observational study using a web-based survey to collect data on the 1-year prevalence of injuries and illness. This study involved 564 judo athletes (67% males), aged between 18 and 25 years. Of these, 344 athletes (61%) reported one or more injuries within the previous year, and 49 reported illness (9%). The more judo experiences the athlete acquired, the less likely they were to sustain an injury (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.56–1.10; p-value < 0.05) or illness (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.81–1.00; p-value < 0.05). Support of an athletic trainer was associated with 1.7 times increased odds of sustaining an injury (95% CI: 1.19–2.49; p-value < 0.05). Athletes with obese BMI status (BMI > 30) had 3.1 times higher odds of becoming ill (95% CI: 1.41–6.95; p-value = 0.005), and athletes training more than 5 days per week had the odds of becoming ill increased by 5.1 times (95% CI: 1.11–23.21; p-value = 0.036). Judokas with fewer years of experience and with obese status should be targeted in efforts to prevent injury and illness. Moreover, the support of an athletic trainer and the impact of weekly training days should be targeted in research efforts.