WRESTLERS from Israel

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Israeli Wrestlers of all time. This list of famous Israeli Wrestlers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Israeli Wrestlers.

1. Yael Arad (b. 1967)

With an HPI of 38.37, Yael Arad is the most famous Israeli Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages on wikipedia.

Yael Arad (Hebrew: יעל ארד; born 1 May 1967) is an Israeli judoka. She was the first Israeli to win an Olympic medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona in 1992. She is widely recognized as one of Israel's most successful athletes and is credited with bringing judo into the athletic mainstream. After her retirement, Arad developed a career as a businesswoman and CEO. She specializes in entrepreneurship, business development and marketing strategy. She manages the commercial rights of ViacomCBS in Israel. Arad advises companies in various sectors and lectures on excellence in sports, life and business.In 2023, Arad became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

2. Ariel Ze'evi (b. 1977)

With an HPI of 33.97, Ariel Ze'evi is the 2nd most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Ariel "Arik" Ze'evi (Hebrew: אריאל "אריק" זאבי, born 16 January 1977) is a retired Israeli dan 6 black belt in judo. He had a long and successful career competing in half-heavyweight judo competitions. He won an Olympic bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in the men's 100 kg judo competition.

3. Oren Smadja (b. 1970)

With an HPI of 33.48, Oren Smadja is the 3rd most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Shay-Oren Smadja (Hebrew: אורן סמדג'ה; born 20 June 1970) is an Israeli judo coach and former competitive judoka. Smadja won an Olympic bronze medal in judo at the 1992 Summer Olympics, making him the first Israeli male to win an Olympic medal, and the second Israeli overall after Yael Arad who won silver in judo the day before.

4. Yarden Gerbi (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 29.85, Yarden Gerbi is the 4th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Yarden Gerbi (or Jerbi, Hebrew: ירדן ג'רבי; born 8 July 1989) is an Israeli former judoka world champion. She won an Olympic bronze medal competing for Israel at the 2016 Summer Olympics, in women's 63 kg judo. Gerbi won the gold medal at the 2013 World Judo Championships in the ‍–‍63 kg category. She won the Israeli championship five times by the age of 24, and was a silver medalist in the 2009 Maccabiah Games.

5. Sagi Muki (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 29.17, Sagi Muki is the 5th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Sagi Aharon Muki (or Moki; Hebrew: שגיא אהרון מוקי; born 17 May 1992) is an Israeli Olympic and former world champion half-middleweight judoka. Muki is the 2019 World Champion. He also won the 2015 and 2018 European championships. In the mixed team event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Muki was a member of the Israeli team that won the bronze medal. In August 2011 Muki won the European Cup U20 in Berlin in the under 73 kilogram (161-pound) category. He won gold medals in February 2013 at the European Open in Tbilisi, Georgia, in June 2013 at the European Open Tallinn, and in October 2013 at the European Open Minsk in the under 73 weight class. In May 2014, he won the Baku Grand Slam in Azerbaijan in the under 73 kg category, and the following month he won another International Judo Federation World Tour gold medal, this time at the Havana Grand Prix in the under 73 kg category. Muki is a two-time Israeli judo champion. In June 2015, representing Israel at the 2015 European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan, he won the gold medal and the European championship in judo in the under 73 kg weight class. Competing for Israel at the 2016 Summer Olympics he came in 5th place. He was ranked No. 1 in the world in March 2019. Muki represented Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics in judo in the men's 81 kg event, and came in ninth, and in the mixed team event, in which Team Israel came in ninth.

6. Or Sasson (b. 1990)

With an HPI of 28.13, Or Sasson is the 6th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Or "Ori" Sasson (Hebrew: אור "אורי" ששון; born 18 August 1990) is a retired Israeli Olympic judoka. He won a bronze medal in the +100 kg category at the 2016 Summer Olympics and another one at the 2020 Summer Olympics. He is the second of three Israelis to win two Olympic medals. In June 2015, representing Israel at the 2015 European Games in judo in the +100 kg category in Baku, Azerbaijan, Sasson won a silver medal in the 2015 European Judo Championship which was held during the European Games.

7. Tohar Butbul (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 0.00, Tohar Butbul is the 7th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Tohar Butbul (Hebrew: טוהר בוטבול; born 24 January 1994) is an Israeli Olympic judoka. He competes in the under 73 kg weight category, where he won silver medals at the 2019 Judo World Masters and the 2021 European Championships, and won bronze medals in the 2017 Paris Grand Slam and 2017 Abu Dhabi Grand Slam. As of March 2018 he was ranked #9 in the world in the U73 kg division. He was a member of the Israeli team that won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Butbul represented Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics in judo in the men's 73 kg event in which he came in ninth, and in the mixed team event, in which Team Israel came in ninth.

8. Tal Flicker (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 0.00, Tal Flicker is the 8th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Tal Flicker (Hebrew: טל פליקר; born 28 May 1992) is an Israeli judoka. He competes in the under 66 kg weight category, and won bronze medals in the 2017 World Judo Championships and the 2018 European Judo Championships as well as a silver medal in the 2020 European Judo Championships. Flicker won the 2017 Baku Grand Slam, 2017 Cancún Grand Prix and Abu Dhabi Grand Slam. In August 2017 he was ranked # 1 in the world in the U66 kg division.

9. Inbal Shemesh (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 0.00, Inbal Shemesh is the 9th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Inbal Shemesh (ענבל שמש; born 14 December 1996) is an Israeli judoka. She competes in the under 63 kg weight category, and won a silver medal in the 2019 Tel Aviv Grand Prix. Earlier in her career, Shemesh won bronze medals at the 2013 European U18 Championships, the 2016 European U21 Championships and the 2018 European U23 Championships. Shemesh won a gold medal at the 2017 Maccabiah Games. Throughout 2022, Shemesh has won two gold medals at IJF Grand Slams. Her first was in June at the 2022 Judo Grand Slam Tbilisi with a finals win over 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Ketleyn Quadros of Brazil. Her second was in November at the 2022 Judo Grand Slam Baku with an ippon in golden score against Geke van den Berg of the Netherlands.

10. Inbar Lanir (b. 2000)

With an HPI of 0.00, Inbar Lanir is the 10th most famous Israeli Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Inbar Lanir (Hebrew: ענבר לניר; born 3 April 2000) is an Israeli Olympic silver medalist judoka and 2023 world champion. She competes in the under 78 kg weight category. She also won a mixed-team bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games. In addition to winning the 2023 world championship, she won gold medals at the 2023 World Masters and the 2023 Ulaanbaatar Grand Slam. Lanir competed for Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and won the silver medal in the women's 78 kg, while she also represented Israel in the mixed team event, in which Team Israel came in ninth.