Clarisse Agbegnenou in the women's under-63kg is one of four winners of $10,000 from France ©Getty Images

The International Judo Federation (IJF) is to reward each of its world number ones at the end of 2021 with $10,000 (£7,400/€8,800).

A total of 14 judoka are in line to earn the prize money across the IJF's men's and women's weight categories.

France, the nation which clinched the mixed team title at Tokyo 2020, has four athletes top of their respective rankings at the end of the year, including reigning Olympic and world women's under-63 kilograms champion Clarisse Agbegnenou.

Madeleine Malonga tops the women's under-78kg after earning a silver medal at both the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and the World Judo Championships in Budapest. 

Olympic bronze medallist Romane Dicko in the women's over-78kg is another year-end world number one and so too women's under-52kg European champion and Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Amandine Buchard.

Russian judoka Arman Adamian and Tamerlan Bashaev lead the way in the two biggest men's weight divisions - the under-100kg and over-100kg, respectively.

Bashaev clinched bronze at Tokyo 2020.

Kosovo also has two winners of the $10,000 - women's under-48kg Olympic and European champion Distria Krasniqi and the women's under-57kg gold medallist at Tokyo 2020 Nora Gjakova.

Kosovo's Distria Krasniqi is the women's under-48kg Olympic and European champion, and the world number one ©Getty Images
Kosovo's Distria Krasniqi is the women's under-48kg Olympic and European champion, and the world number one ©Getty Images

Lasha Shavdatuashvili is one of two Georgians positioned at number one in their weight division, having triumphed at the World Championships in the men's under-73kg and earned silver at Tokyo 2020.

His compatriot Tato Grigalashvili, a World Championship silver medallist, tops the men's under-81kg world rankings.

Croatia's world champion Barbara Matić is the number one judoka in the women's under-70kg category, and Chinese Taipei's Olympic silver medallist Yang Yung-wei first in the men's under-60kg.

Two Tokyo 2020 bronze medallists complete the list of world number ones - South Korean An Ba-ul for the men's under-66kg and Davlat Bobonov of Uzbekistan for the men's under-90kg.

Bobonov also won an individual silver at the World Championships.

"For several years the IJF has been waiting until the end of the year to reward the tenacity of the best," the IJF said.

"In this time of global crisis and with an uncertain future, offering significant support is a powerful message for those who doubt."

The first scheduled event of 2022 on the IJF's calendar is the Odivelas Grand Prix in Portugal from January 28 to 30.