Member News

December 28, 2006

U23 Team Program Shines in Initial Year

The U-23 Team at the Tre-Torri International where the squad garnered four top-five finishes.

Following the Tre-Torri event, the Team stayed in Italy for a week-long training camp.

The U-23 Team members were among 80 participants at a trianing camp at Pedro's Judo in August.

In February, USA Judo created the Elite U-23 Team Program which identifies and develops America’s talented young athletes with the goal of preparing them for success at the international level sooner.  In doing so, USA Judo hopes to create a stronger and more experienced pipeline of athletes for its National Team.  In less than one year, the U23 Program, which is made up of 19 athletes, has had tremendous success.   

Athletes in the U-23 program receive coaching and funding for participation in selected tournaments and camps as well as recommended development plans and assistance with strength and conditioning programs.  The U-23 Team is directed by Jimmy Pedro, a two-time Olympic medalist and 1999 World Champion and overseen by Eddie Liddie, USA Judo Director of Athlete Performance.

Less than a week after U-23 members Katie Mocco (70kg) and Jeremy Liggett (60kg) won medals at the Pan American Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the U-23 Team took off to Italy for its first competition as a team at the Tre-Torri International.

Marti Malloy earned her first B-Level senior European medal, and the team’s best finish, placing second in the 57kg division while Pan Am Team member Garry St. Leger also reached the podium with a bronze medal at 90kg.  Fifteen-year-old Jeanette Rodriguez (48kg) and 16-year-old Rafael Ramos (60kg) were among the youngest athletes to fight for medals over the weekend with both athletes finishing fifth.  Less than two months earlier the teenagers each won the Senior National Championships in Houston.

In addition to success in the senior divisions, four U-23 athletes won the Junior World Trials, July 29 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.  Rodriguez, Liggett, Franchesca Durand (52kg) and Kayla Harrison (70kg) each competed at the Junior Worlds in the Dominican Republic with Rodriguez picking up a 3-2 record to finish fifth.

After the junior season wound down, Pedro and the team spent two weeks in training camps in late August, first working out with Team Canada in Montreal and then spending five days at Pedro’s Judo Center in Wakefield, Mass.

Pedro led sessions at the Montreal camp along with fellow Olympic medalists Nicolas Gill (CAN), Jason Morris and Mark Berger (CAN).

"It is  equally important for this team to be around winners and champions,” Pedro said. “Whenever a youngster can surround themselves with champions who have achieved greatness, they start to believe and realize that success is possible.  In Montreal, the team had the luxury of learning from four Olympic medalists.”

Following the Montreal camp, the U-23 Team embarked on a second week of training at Pedro’s Judo Center that included three judo training sessions per day.   In addition to team members, athletes from throughout the country attended the camp, including Olympians Ronda Rousey (63kg), Rick Hawn (81kg) and Adler Volmar (100kg); 2006 Senior Nationals silver medalists Radu Brestyan (73kg); and 2005 World Team member Dariusz Mikolajczak (90kg).

"The two weeks of training camp were terrific development and training opportunities for the U23 Team,” Pedro said. “In addition to intense randori sessions at the Shidokan in Montreal and Pedro's Judo Center, we were able to get in some quality technical sessions with the team and work on their weaknesses."

With as many as 80 athletes attending nightly randori sessions, athletes had plenty of opportunities to train with players from throughout the country.  In addition to coaching from Pedro, camp participants also had the chance to learn from coaches; Jim Pedro Sr., 1993 World Team Coach and 2006 Junior World Team Coach German Velazco while the camp was managed by Chris Skelley.

"I am extremely happy with the group's attitude toward training - they work hard on and off the mat.  If we can continue this program's momentum and carry it through to 2012, I have no doubt that we will have a strong American judo team from top to bottom."

Ann Shirashi (48kg) was the lone U-23 athlete to compete at the World Championships by Team of Nation, but the 20-year-old had one of the best finishes for the Americans, throwing Russian Natalia Samoilova, a World and Super World Cup medalist for ippon during the team event.

Kenny Hashimoto (66kg) was the Team’s top performer at the U-23 Team’s next international outing at the Rendez-Vous Canada, Sept. 23-24 in Montreal.  Hashimoto won his first Senior B-Level event at 66kg, counting a finals victory over 2005 World Team member Justin Flores among his wins.

Rodriguez and St. Leger added two more medals for the U-23 crew with Rodriguez winning silver and St. Leger taking bronze.  Not only did the duo fare well in divisions that included some of the top players in the world, but in doing so moved into the top ranking on the USA Judo Senior Elite National roster. 

Travis Stevens (81kg) rounded out the U-23 medal count with a bronze.

The squad finished out their year with a series of upsets of top-level competitors at the U.S. Open, Oct. 20-21 in Miami, Fla. 

Stevens, Rodriguez and Bobby Lee (73kg) each won their first U.S. Open medals with exciting gold medal finals wins.

Stevens upset 2006 Pan Am medalist Aaron Cohen for the first time ever in an action-packed closing match as each athlete fought well in a quest for their first U.S. Open Title with Stevens throwing Cohen first for waza-ari and then for ippon to finish the match in the last minute.

Rodriguez and Sayaka Matsumoto, also a 2006 Pan Am bronze medalist, continued what has rapidly become one of the most interesting #1 vs. #2 rivalries in U.S. Judo.  Rodriguez had upset the six-time National Champion at the Seniors Nationals in April, but Matsumoto won their next three match-ups.  Rodriguez dominated the fight, taking Matsumoto to the ground twice before throwing her for ippon match. 

Lee’s final match pitted the top-ranked junior against two-time Pan Am Champion Chuck Jefferson who returned to competition after a year-long sabbatical to upset former U.S. Open Champions Ryan Reser and Nick Tritton (CAN) earlier in the day.  Ahead by a koka earned off a shido, Lee threw Jefferson for ippon with seven seconds remaining in the match. 

Other U-23 Team members who won medals at the Open included silver medalists Malloy and Harrison and bronze medalists Shirashi, Franchesca Durand, Garry St. Leger, Kenny Hashimoto  and Daniel McCormick (+100kg).

With several members of the team aging out of the program at the end of the year, USA Judo will be announcing members of the 2007 squad in January.  Next year’s team will see a variety of events in 2007, including tournaments in Great Britain, Italy and Germany as well as training camps with some of the top coaches in the world.

"After working for just one year with the U23 Team, I am extremely optimistic about the future of US Judo,” Pedro said. “For the first time in a long time, we have an entire group of very strong and talented young judoka who are extremely competitive and willing to do what it takes to become champions."