Member News

April 27, 2007

USA Judo Honors 2006 Coaches of the Year at Senior Nationals

Jason Morris receives his 2006 USA Judo National Coach of the Year award from USA Judo President Dr. Ron Tripp.

Four coaches were honored with USA Judo 2006 Coaching Awards during a presentation on April 21 at the USA Judo Senior National Championships in Miami, Fla.

Jason Morris (Glenville, N.Y.) was named the National Coach of the Year by a committee of top-level USA Judo coaches.

Morris was the Head Coach of the 2006 Pan American Championship Team – the first Olympic Qualifier for Team USA.  Under Morris’ direction, the Americans won two silver and four bronze medals as well as two fifth-place finishes. 

As the coach of one of the most prestigious senior programs in the country, Morris coached the athletes of the USA Judo National Training Site at the Jason Morris Judo Center to both domestic and international medals as three of his athletes (Jeremy Liggett, 60kg; Carrie Chandler, 52kg; and Katie Mocco, 70kg, all of Glenville, N.Y.) each held #1 rankings in the nation.  As the youngest athlete on the Pan Am Team, 17-year-old Liggett won a silver medal in the 60kg division, producing one of the tournaments biggest upsets in the semis when he defeated the previous Champion by ippon (instant win).  Chandler had excellent European results, winning bronze medals at the Belgium Ladies Open and Finnish Open to make her one of only three U.S. women to win two or more B-Level medals in Europe in 2006.  Mocco also had an excellent season, winning a bronze medal at her second Pan Am Championships. 

Morris also had success in the junior ranks as his athletes comprised six of the 14 slots on the Junior World Team.  Earlier in the season, Morris’ junior athletes won four medals at the Pan Am Junior Championships, including a gold by 15-year-old Kyle Vashkulat (Glenville, N.Y.) in the 90kg division.

Nominated to the position of 2008 Olympic Head Coach, Morris also has worked with nearly all of the top-ranked players from other clubs throughout the United States to prepare them for the next steps toward qualifying for Beijing.

"I am honored to receive this award, but just as an athlete, you don't win awards by yourself, so I would like to thank my wife and partner, Teri Takemori (Glenville, N.Y.) and all the JMJC athletes to make it all possible,” Morris said after receiving his award.

Jhonny Prado, 2006 USA Judo Developmental Coach of the Year

Through his program at the USA Judo National Training Site at North Miami, Developmental Coach of the Year Honoree Jhonny Prado (Coral Springs, Fla.) has accomplished the rare feat of developing young athletes who have success at all levels, from the youngest juniors through the senior elite ranks.  With several athletes in prime contention for the 2008 Games, Prado’s athletes are sure to only increase their success as we approach 2012 and beyond.

In 2006, Prado and his fellow North Miami Coach German Velazco (Coral Springs, Fla.) produced more athletes that have achieved both junior and senior success than any other coach in the country.  Presently the North Miami program has six athletes ranked in the top-two nationally in their division – five of whom are between the ages of 15 and 18-years-old.  Jeanette Rodriguez (Coral Springs, Fla. / 48kg) had one of the biggest breakout performances of the year, winning the Senior Nationals as a 15-year-old, followed by the Senior U.S. Open later in the year.  Rodriguez also won a silver medal at the Rendez-Vous Canada and finished fifth at the Tre-Torri International in Italy – both Senior B-Level Tournaments.  In her first Junior Worlds appearance, Rodriguez finished fifth – the second-best performance by an American. 

Eighteen-year-old Bobby Lee (Coral Springs, Fla.) also had an outstanding year, holding the #1 junior ranking at 73kg while also winning the Senior U.S. Open in an upset of a two-time Pan American Champion. 

Prado, coach of the 2006 Junior World Team that sent two athletes to the medal rounds for the first time since 1994, also was the coach of the Pan American Junior and Juvenile Teams that won 26 medals out of 32 divisions, including seven golds.  The team included many of Prado’s own athletes who won five of the gold medals as well as two silver medals and a bronze. 

Bert Becerra (far right), 2006 USA Judo Volunteer Coach of the Year, with six of his top junior athletes.

Bert Becerra (Garland, Texas) won the Volunteer Coach of the Year award fo r his work through his program Becerra Judo and Jujitsu.  Becerra is the head coach of one of the largest judo schools in the country, producing many top junior players, including eight junior medalists in 2006.  One of Becerra’s top players, 19-year-old Andre Taylor (Dubuque, Iowa), won a silver medal at the Senior Nationals in the 55kg division, moving him up to the #1 ranking in the division.  Within a week of winning a bronze medal at the Pan Am Junior Championships, Taylor also qualified as one of the youngest members of the Senior Pan Am Team.  Christopher Cody (Plano, Texas) is ranked fifth in the 73kg U-20 division while Paul Gomez (Harlingen, Texas) holds a #4 ranking in the U-20 100kg division and Michael Assells (Garland, Texas) is the #1-ranked athlete in the 11-12-year-old 48kg division. 

Rhadi Ferguson receives his 2006 USA Judo "Doc Counsilman" award for his contributions to judo through coaching and sports science from USA Judo President Dr. Ron Tripp.

Rhadi Ferguson (Boca Raton, Fla.) was USA Judo’s “Doc” Counsilman Award recipient as a coach that utilizes scientific techniques/equipment as an integral part of his/her coaching methods, or has created innovative ways to use sport science. 

Ferguson maintains one of the most comprehensive judo programs in the nation, combining his vast knowledge of physiology and psychology to produce some of the top players in the United States.  Ferguson is best known for his creation of timed cycles for each of his athletes that result in peak performances.  Ferguson also uses SWOT analysis, intricate dissection of taped footage for match strategy and extensive physiological testing in his coaching of top athletes.

Among the athletes Ferguson worked with in 2006, Valerie Gotay (Harlingen, Texas / 57kg) and Anthony Turner (Miami, Fla. / +100kg) were both ranked #1 in their weight divisions during the year while Taraje Williams-Murray (Bronx, N.Y.) made remarkable strides after moving from 60kg up to 66kg where he won bronze medals at the Senior Nationals and U.S. Open.

“It’s great to see our strongest coaches working together and being rewarded for their efforts,” said Eddie Liddie (Colorado Springs, Colo.), USA Judo Director of Athlete Performance.  “These coaches have all worked not only with their own programs, but with each other in various capacities during the last year and it has shown in both their professional interactions and the success our athletes as a whole have found.”

Each of these four coaches was nominated for national awards through the U.S. Olympic Committee.  The USOC will announce their award winners from nominations in each of the Olympic and Pan American sports on May 3.