Raz Hershko 
Date of Birth: June 19, 1998
Sport: Judo (78+ kg)
Association: “Mitav Netanya”
Coach: Shani Hershko 
Raz Hershko began training in judo at the age of 4 and also played basketball. At the age of 12, she decided to focus on judo and was part of the senior national team already during her teenage years.
In October 2018, Shani Hershko won her first medal in a senior competition, a gold medal at the ‘European Cup’ held in Malaga, Spain.
Her breakthrough came in 2021 when she won several medals at Grand Slam tournaments, as well as a team Olympic medal, a bronze medal, with the Israeli team at the Tokyo Olympic Games, which were postponed from 2020 to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the summer of 2023, Hershko was ranked first in her weight category by the International Judo Federation and held the highest score across all 7 weight categories in women’s competitions, a historic first for the sport in Israel.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Hershko won a silver medal after three victories and one defeat. She arrived in Paris ranked number 2 in the world rankings.
In her second round against Marit Kamp from the Netherlands, she threw her opponent with a Sode-Tsurikomi-Goshi technique and then won by pin. In the quarterfinals, she defeated Serbian Milica Žavić, and in the semifinals, she beat Turkish Kaira Özdemir in just 15 seconds with a perfect ippon.
In the final, Hershko faced Brazilian Beatriz Souza and lost by wazari. At the medal ceremony, Yael Arad, Chair of the Olympic Committee of Israel and member of the International Olympic Committee, presented Raz with the silver medal.
Career achievements:
The Olympic Games
Silver Medal – Paris 2024
Bronze Medal – Tokyo 2020 (Mixed Team)
World Championships
Bronze Medal – Tashkent 2022 (Mixed Team)
Bronze Medal – Doha 2023
European Championships
Gold Medal – Zagreb 2024
Silver Medal – Sofia 2022
Silver Medal – Montpellier 2023
Grand Slam tournaments
Paris 2024 – Silver Medal
Tel Aviv 2023 – Gold Medal
Tbilisi 2023 – Gold Medal
Olan in the 2023 Tour – Silver Medal
Olan in the 2022 Tour – Gold Medal
Zagreb 2022 – Gold Medal