Faicel Jaballah, over-100kg judoka, is one of seven home top seeds in the imminent African Judo Championships in Tunis ©IJF

Host nation Tunisia have high hopes for the 2018 African Judo Championships starting in their capital city tomorrow as they supply seven of the top 14 seeds.

A total of 176 judoka from 25 countries have gathered for the four-day Championships in Tunis, where the other main challengers for gold at the Palais sportif el Menzah Tunisia will be Algeria, who have three top seeds, Morocco and Egpyt, both of whom have two top seeds.

Nihel Cheikh Rouhou in the women’s over-78 kilograms class is the highest ranked of the home top seeds, currently 21st in the world rankings.

She has masses of top class experience, having finished seventh at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and taken bronze in last year’s World Championships, finishing third in the Tunis Grand Prix earlier this year.

Sarra Mzougui, African silver medallist last year in the women’s under-78kg class, is ranked top contender this year.

Three other women judoka from Tunisia are seeded one in their prospective events - Ghofran Khelifi, last year’s African Junior champion, in the under 57kg class, Olfa Saoudi, winner at last year’s Tunis African Open, in the under 48kg, and Sofia Belattar, who will defend the women’s under 63kg title

Fraj Dhouibi will be another home judoka defending a title in the men’s under-60kg, while his compatriot Faicel Jaballah, winner of last year’s Tunis African Open is top seed in the men’s over-100kg.

Morocco’s Rio 2016 Olympian Assmaa Niang is the highest ranked judoka in the Championships, seventh in the world lists.

Morocco's Assmaa Niang is the highest ranked competitor taking part in the 2018 African Judo Championships ©Getty Images
Morocco's Assmaa Niang is the highest ranked competitor taking part in the 2018 African Judo Championships ©Getty Images

The 35-year-old, winner of last month’s International Judo Federation Grand Prix in Agadir, and finished fifth in this year’s Paris Grand Prix, is top seed in the women’s under-70kg category.

Morocco’s other top seed is Ahmed El Meziati, winner of last year’s Dakar African Open in the men’s under-73kg class.

His team-mate Abderrahmane Benamadi, winner of the bronze medal in the men’s under 90kg class at these Championships last year, is favoured to do even better this time round.

Meriem Moussa, meanwhile, will be defending his men’s under-52kg title.

Houd Zourdani will defend his men’s under-66kg title.

Egypt’s Ramadan Darwish, world ranked 15 and silver medallist at these Championships in the men’s under-100kg class, is seeded first this time round.

But he will face a strong challenge from Algeria’s defending champion Lyes Bouyacoub.

Mohamed Abdelaal is the other Egyptian top-seeded judoka in the men’s under-81kg, where he has been African champion for the last two years.