British Judo have named a nine-strong team for the IJF World Championships ©Mike Varey/elitepix

Britain have announced a team of nine for the International Judo Federation (IJF) World Championships, due to be held from August 24 until 29 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

London 2012 Olympic silver medallist Gemma Gibbons leads the line-up and will hope to continue the form which saw her claim gold in the under 78 kilogram division at the IJF Grand Prix in Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar last month. 

“The World Championship is one of the highest levels you can perform at in judo, so I’m really excited to be going to Astana," said Gibbons. 

“I’ve never been a medallist at the World’s before so that’s my goal going in to the Championship.”

Gibbons’ team-mate Alice Schlesinger, however, has experienced standing on the podium at a World Championships having won bronze in the under 63kg division in 2009, when she was competing for Israel.

The pair joined their fellow judokas who have been selected at the official team announcement today at the British Judo Association's Centre of Excellence in Walsall.

The selection was revealed through the video streaming app Periscope before the nine athletes participated in a live question and answer session with fans.

Fans were able to ask questions of several judokas whom they saw claim gold medals at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games who will be aiming to replicate their success in Kazakhstan's capital.

Natalie Powell is one of several Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games champions named in the team
Natalie Powell is one of several Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games champions named in Britain's team for the World Judo Championships in Astana ©Getty Images

Under 57kg and 78kg judokas Nekoda Davis and Natalie Powell were both topped the podium at the Commonwealth Games and will be seeking to secure their first medals at World Championships, as will under 52kg Commonwealth silver medallist Kelly Edwards.

Both Ashley McKenzie and Colin Oates, winners of gold medals in the under 60kg and 66kg event at Glasgow 2014, have also been selected to compete in Astana.

The third and final man on the team is under 100kg judoka Ben Fletcher, who missed the Commonwealth Games due to injury but has displayed good form this season having earned his first ever IJF Grand Prix medal in Ulaanbaatar, a bronze.

The squad are set to be joined at the by elite performances coaches Jean-Paul Bell and Kate Howey, with the latter believing the Championships will prove vital as the athletes prepare for next year’s Olympic Games.

“The World Championships will be a big test for a lot of our players as we look towards Rio next year,” she said.

“Everyone has been training really hard and are looking forward to taking on the best players in the world."



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