The small Georgian team offered to pull out of the 2008 Beijing Olympics because of Russian invasion but their president insisted they compete. 2007 world middleweight champion Irakli Tsirekidze did his nation proud by first defeating Russian Ivan Pershin in the semi-final, then defeating Algeria’s Amar Benikhlef in the final to claim the 90kg judo gold.

The Georgian didn’t do anything special in the final but showed composure, speed and quick, strong grip to grab gold. After winning he said "I am just so glad right now," said Tsirekidze on his victory. "I have prepared four years for this competition and it's good that everything worked out good for me. This is the best result I've ever had."

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So what specific preparation would Irakli have done for this judo final? Grappling sports like judo require speed and power but also a great deal of isometric strength with specific attention being paid to neck strength and grip strength. Exercises such as the barbell clean or the barbell snatch and their dumbbell alternatives require the use of the whole body and help develop power and whole body coordination. Squat jumps and medicine ball lifts also help develop power. Using dumbbells, kettlebells and medicine balls also allows multi-planar lifts, which are more relevant to the combat sports than just single-plane lifts. Grip strength is developed within strength training sessions just by holding the weights, but it can also be enhanced by introducing some variation. Instead of normal pull-ups, wrap a towel around the bar to increase its size, or hang the towel over the bar and grip each end and pull up. Holding two Olympic disks together instead of using a dumbbell or medicine ball also enhances grip strength.

Neck strength can be developed through exercises such as shrugs, but the use of neck harnesses to perform flexion, extension and rotation exercises will develop specific strength. The neck bridge, which requires the athlete to kneel down and place their head on the floor and then roll forwards, backwards and side to side places load on the neck, should be done with care. Manual resistance against your own hand or by placing a rolled up towel around the head and pushing with your head while pulling the towel with your hands will develop isometric strength in the neck. Care must be taken on all these exercises, however, to ensure that all directions of movement are trained to prevent muscle imbalances and the corresponding likelihood of injury problems developing.

It may have only been on the mat, but hopefully Irakli’s strength and determination will encourage the thousands who have evacuated his hometown back in Georgia.

To find out more about Training for Combat Sports click here

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Check out Georgia's Irakli Tsirekidze competing against Russia's Ivan Pershin in the semi-final in the video below: