They form part of a larger delegation heading out to France as performance director Margaret Hicks has "taken the opportunity for a larger group of players to train in Paris with some of the best opposition in the world for the training week that follows the Grand Slam".

"We have a small group of elite women who will compete at the Paris Grand Slam, following medals and top five places in tournaments such as the Korea World Cup and Tokyo Grand Slam at the end of last year," she said.

"We have a mixture of experience and youth in this group and we hope to see some further performances during this first Grand Slam of 2011.

"For the men this event is too early within their programme and some players will be competing later in the World Cups and the German Grand Prix during the next two months."

Organised since 1971 in many forms, varying from the international tournament of the Tournoi de Paris, to A-tournament, Super A-tournament and now Grand Slam, it is still one of the most prestigious tournaments on the world judo circuit.

It is due to take place on February 5 and 6.

Selected to represent Great Britain are Gemma Howell in the -57kg category, Gemma Gibbons in the -70kg, Karina Bryant in the +78kg and Sarah Adlington in the +78kg

Bryant, who reached her 20th major championships medal last year with a bronze at the 2010 European Championships, is yet to capture a medal at a Grand Slam.

With a fifth place finish at the 2010 Paris Grand Slam, the +78kg fighter will be one to watch on the French stage.

Fast rising judoka and fellow +78kg fighter Adlington has been making her mark on the circuit, winning four World Cup medals and three European Cup medals last year.

Gibbons ended 2010 on a high with a bronze medal at the Korean World Cup, adding to her silver medal at the 2010 GB World Cup that she won in front of a home crowd in Birmingham in October.

Howell is the youngest member of the team at just 20 years old and impressed at the Paris event in 2009 when she finished fifth and her profile has been growing since.

Proving she is handling the transition from junior to senior well, the Brit finished in seventh place at the 2010 Senior World Championships and won a bronze medal at the under-23 European Championships.

The tournament is one of only four Grand Slams on the International Judo Federation's calendar -joining Moscow, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo - and there are 300 ranking points up for grabs for winning a gold medal.