The weekend of the 13th-15th of December saw a number of our performance squad players make the trip down to Warwick University for the biggest and toughest domestic event of the year: the British Championships. Big Gav, Sarah A and Craig were on hand to coach and support the team across the weekend, with Sarah A competing in the senior event as well as coaching the juniors.
The juniors were first up on Saturday, with the majority making their debut at the British Championships. With the junior category being for athletes under 21 years old, the experience gained this weekend will be invaluable for our players as they transition from cadets to juniors.
Liam THOMPSON (-66kg) – Liam took part in the very first match up of the day and didn’t disappoint; dominating his opponent throughout the contest, who was subsequently disqualified for dangerous behaviour. Liam was unfortunately held down in his second contest, however displayed great resilience to win his first repechage contest with a massive left ippon seoi-nage (pictured above). Liam followed this up with a huge ura-nage in the next round, going into his fifth contest against a player whom he previously had close contests with. Unfortunately, Liam was thrown for ippon, which ended his tournament there.
Kirsty WILSON (-70kg) – Our sole female junior competitor, Kirsty is still a cadet athlete but was not phased stepping onto the mat against older and more experienced athletes. Kirsty unfortunately lost both of her contests; however, she showed great spirit and tenacity while displaying what our players have been working on recently, coming away with many positives to build on.
Omar KARAALLAL (-73kg) – Another cadet, Omar took part in the closely contested -73kg category. Despite being younger and much smaller than the other players, Omar gave a good account of himself. Unfortunately, the draw was not kind to Omar, with him facing the reigning champion and another former champion, both of whom compete internationally regularly. Omar fought hard but exited the tournament after losing both contests. Despite his competition being over, Omar was a great teammate and later in the day helped the heavier players warm up before their contests.
Evan LEES (-90kg) – Evan had a great day in the -90kg category, starting with a newaza win in a closely contested first fight. He then faced the eventual silver medallist (and 2024 senior silver medallist), with a loss dropping him into the repechage. Evan’s head didn’t go down, winning his next fight through a strong display of gripping, tachiwaza and newaza techniques. Evan then faced a previous adversary for an opportunity to compete for a bronze medal, where unfortunately he lost but should be proud of a strong 7th place result in his first junior trials.
Ethan WYPER (-90kg) – Ethan, also representing Team Bath, was the only player who had previously taken part in the Junior British Championships, winning a brilliant silver medal in the +100kg category last year. Ethan has worked consistently hard throughout the year, moving from +100kg to -100kg and after dropping 25kg, he chose to make his -90kg debut at this event. Ethan fought well but unfortunately lost both of his contests, ending his tournament. Moving to a new category can be tough and we have no doubts that Ethan will settle into -90kg and continue to do well in 2025.
Archie MacGOWAN (+100kg) – Despite being announced as MacGOON, Archie was all business in the +100kg category. It can often be difficult to get contests in the heavyweight categories at certain age groups, but Archie was placed into a pool of five athletes, allowing him four contests. Although one of the lightest in the category, Archie fought extremely hard against his far more experienced competitors, with the highlight of his day taking the eventual champion (and 2024 senior silver medallist) to 3 minutes, displaying great composure, particularly in a lengthy newaza exchange. Archie lost three contests (an opponent withdrew due to injury prior to Archie’s fourth contest), but this does not tell the story of his strong performance.
The action only continued after the junior event, with the seniors upping the ante on Sunday and closing out the 2024 British Championships with a bang. The senior event always promises some very exciting contests through its highly contested categories; with this year's event featuring multiple international competitors, Commonwealth medallists and various Team GB Olympians all hunting for the title of 2024 British Champion.
Reece EDWARDS (-73kg) – Reece finished his first year in the -73kg category with an outstanding and composed performance at the senior event. Reece won his first contest with a beautiful foot sweep for ippon and in the next round, faced the eventual champion and experienced international competitor, Ethan Nairne, where Reece fought hard but was caught for two wazari throws, dropping him into the repechage. Remaining strong, Reece won two contests in the repechage in great style before unfortunately losing his next contest due to injury. This performance cemented Reece into the top 10 in GB, with some growing into the category still to come.
Andrew LAPPIN (-73kg) – Having been out of competition for 13 months due to injury, Andrew travelled to the British Championships to jump back into competing and gain some mat time before the Scottish Open in January. Andrew fought strongly in the stacked -73kg category but unfortunately lost his two contests. It's not easy to return from a lengthy injury and he can take many positives from his performance. 2025 may see a return to the -66kg category for Andrew.
Hazel TAYLOR (-78kg) – Now making her way back to -70kg, Hazel used the trials as her last event at the -78kg category, following taking the -78kg title at the Scottish Closed Championships in November. Despite some good exchanges and strong attacks, Hazel was caught with an armlock in her first fight, and lost by wazari in her second, which unfortunately ended Hazel's tournament.
Sarah ADLINGTON (+78kg) – As an Olympian and two-time Commonwealth Games champion, Sarah had huge pressure to win but did not disappoint. Easing through three contests, Sarah showed patience and displayed some of the skills that have made her so successful, winning her contests using a combination of big throws and newaza techniques. This is Sarah’s 8th title (many events missed through international duties), highlighting her consistency and dedication in training and competition; she was also the only senior British Champion from Scotland in 2024.
Although many of the athletes may be disappointed with the results, all showed great improvements, conducted themselves with great honour and displayed brilliant behaviours on and off the mat. Everyone who took part deserves to hold their heads high, and all of the coaches in the club are extremely proud of the players.
It should be noted that most players trained, prepared and competed around school and university exams. Win or lose, and despite arriving home in the early hours of the morning, the athletes were back on the mat for training on Monday night, showing their dedication and drive. Consistency leads to success, and everyone came out of this year's British Championships with numerous positive points and lots to learn from and build on for an exciting 2025 ahead. Well done everyone!