This month kicked off with a busy weekend of back-to-back competition at the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility, starting with the annual Scottish National Championships on Saturday the 11th of November.
We had a team of juniors and seniors competing at the event who all showcased exceptional effort on the mats; with victories, setbacks and invaluable lessons learned by all. It was the first time competing at a national level for some of our younger players, which provided an invaluable experience and marked another significant step in their judo journey. It takes a lot of guts to step out and compete, and the level of determination and the performances from our juniors was a great reflection of their hard work so far!
A big thank you to our coaches and support team for their guidance on the day. Congratulations to the following players for their podium finishes:
Dylan M -66kg: GOLD
Andrew L -73kg: SILVER
Scott C -81kg: GOLD
Finn T -100kg: SILVER
Gav M +100kg: GOLD
Well done, everyone!
The competitive action continued the following day with the National Kyu and Dan Grading at Ravenscraig.
Well done to those who secured some points on their card and took another step closer towards their black belt. Congratulations to Gavin I, who secured the last points needed for his 2nd Dan and Laith C, who successfully passed his theory exam to become our newest 1st Dan!
The journey to black belt is not an easy one, however the judo shown at the grading was a reflection of the hard work and dedication everyone puts into their training and we’re very proud to see it pay off!
A big well done to all of our junior and squad members who completed their grading at the club. We were really impressed by the effort put into each demonstration, along with the impressive display of teamwork and listening skills; it’s great to see the enthusiasm that our younger members have for judo!
Thank you to all of our members and the coaching/volunteering team for contributing to the success of the day and ensuring that everyone had a memorable grading - we're proud to have such a fantastic community.
A special shout-out to our Swedish friends who joined us for a week of training at the club and the JudoScotland National Training Centre. Thank you to Swedish National Coach and EdinburghJudo athlete Sally Conway for encouraging the boys to train and prepare in Edinburgh. Best of luck in your upcoming events and we look forward to welcoming you again in the future!
Huge well done to all of the development squad members who took part in the JudoScotland Keizoku event. This competition style event provides younger judoka with a relaxed and encouraging competitive experience and there were lots of contests, learning and fun all round at this exceptional development event for younger players!
Thank you to coaches Scott and Karen for supporting the squad at the event - great job everyone!
As we get ready to round off a very busy 2023, we approach the last competition of the year - the British Judo Championships. We have a team of cadets, juniors and seniors all making the trip down to Sheffield in hopes of returning with the title of British Champion. There has been a lot of hard work, preparation and hours of training clocked in towards this event by the team and we wish them all the very best of luck!
We'll have all December's competitive and festive action in the final round up of the year, see you then.