The adapted laws for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cycle were revealed in December and presented at an IJF refereeing and coaching seminar held earlier this month in Azerbaijan’s capital Baku.

Among the revised regulations is the scrapping of the yuko evaluation of technique points, leaving only ippon and waza-ari.

They were first tested in Tunisia’s capital at the weekend, with Barcos saying he came away from the event with an "extraordinary and positive feeling".

"It is never easy to change the rules and as long as we had not seen what it gives in a real competition situation, it is difficult to form a definitive opinion," the Spaniard said.

"Here in Tunis we had two days of high-level competition and during the two final blocks, all the fights were won by a positive score, or, in other words, by an action giving waza-ari or ippon."

As part of the rule changes, the value of waza-ari includes that given for yuko in the past, while the waza-ari does not add up and two waza-ari is no longer the equivalent of ippon.

For immobilisations, waza-ari has been shortened to 10 seconds from 15 and ippon remains as 20.

Furthermore, there is now three shido penalties, instead of the previous four.

Leg grabbing or grabbing the trousers is first penalised by shido and secondly by a hansoku-make disqualification.

The IJF said last month its goal is "to promote the rules of judo and make them easier to understand, as well as to simplify them", adding "the purpose of these rules is to give priority to the attack and to the realisation of ippon".

Barcos claims there was evidence of the latter being achieved in Tunis, with 90 per cent of the matches resulting in a positive score.

"I remember from this weekend that the athletes were strongly committed to win by marking advantages and not by seeking to penalise the opponent," he said.

"It was one of the objectives of this change of rule and here in Tunis it was reached.

"I observed a dynamic judo and a very good fighting spirit from all the participants, who for the very first time could practice the new regulations.

"All this was very moving and everyone had a positive feeling."

Barcos says the first major examination of the new rules will come at next month’s Paris Grand Slam, the first event of the 2017 IJF calendar.

Prior to the event, which is scheduled to take place on February 11 and 12, there are also European Opens due to take place simultaneously in Bulgaria’s capital Sofia and Portuguese city Odivelas on February 4 and 5.

The experience to be gained from the three preceding events is "good and necessary", according to Barcos.

"For sure, it was only a first competition and it is important to stay focused," he added.

"The Paris Grand Slam, February 11 and 12, will really be the big test.

"I also note that the rules of ethics of our sport have been fully respected. 

"If judo becomes more dynamic and comprehensible for the spectators, the media, the sponsors and of course for the judokas themselves, and if we keep what is part of our genes, namely our moral code, then we will have made great progress.

"I think it was the idea of our President, Mr. Marius Vizer and after this first event, we can be optimistic."