Sawyers and Mortimer take up places on England Squad Programme 2008-09
The Club’s Adam Sawyers and Adam Mortimer have both been selected to join the England Squad Programme. The English Squad Programme is a development programme, which aims to prepare players for progression up the BJA’s World Class Performance pathway, with the ultimate goal of winning medals at the Senior World Championships and Olympic Games.
The goals of the England Squad Programme are:
TO IDENTIFY young judo players with long term potential.
TO DEVELOP these judo players, both physically and mentally, by using the right training at the right time.
TO EQUIP these players with the skills, experience and knowledge needed to build a strong foundation for future achievements and long-term success.
The two Adams will now have the opportunity to train with the squad at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield and also the BJA’s centre of excellence down in Dartford.
Hull Judo Club is pleased to have these players amongst their ranks, will continue to support their development and looks forward to seeing them reach their potential.
2008 British Championships
Adam Mortimer and Adam Sawyers returned home from the 2008 British Championships with Silver and Bronze medals respectively as part of a 10 member team from Hull Judo Club.
Mortimer, who has been competing for little over a year, showed confidence and determination to win his first three fights in the under 55kg category on his way to the final. Mortimer fought in such a way that meant you would not be aware that he was one of five members of the team to be competing for the first time at this level.
Sawyers had five fights on his way to picking up the under 69kg Bronze medal, coming up against the eventual champion in the third round. Showing a range of judo techniques Sawyers fought well throughout the day.
Thomas Booth and Jack Sawyers both fought in the under 46kg category, showing the determination that the club nurtures and both continue to show development in their judo. Sawyers showed a good range of technical ability; whilst Booth showed that he was able to build on one of the fundamentals of judo – the initial grips and stance.
Abigail Chambers came up against some difficult opposition as she returned from injury. Chambers showed signs of what the future holds when she has the opportunity to prepare fully for competition.
Meg Gibson-Gibbs showed great talent and positive thinking as she fought against much more experienced players.
Both Laura Williams and Shannon Maltby had difficult draws as they competed for the first time in a competition of this calibre and despite finishing the competition without a victory, showed much potential for next year.
Sadly, Fern Mortimer and Matthew Neal had to be withdrawn from the competition due to injuries.
All members of the team competed well and were a credit to the club, both on and off the competition arena, and the coaches are looking forward to next year as the team continues to grow and develop.
MEDAL HAUL AT KNOTTINGLY
Eleven players from Hull Judo Club took part in the Knottingley Festival of Judo. They returned home with ten medals. The results where:
In the Under 16's age band: Jack Claxton (under 46kg) - Gold, Adam Sawyers (under 66kg) - Silver, Thomas Booth (under 46kg), Adam Mortimer (under 55kg), Laura Williams (under 48kg), Shannon Moltby (under 44kg) and Meg Gibson (under 63kg) - Bronze.
In the Under 12's age band: Fern Mortimer (under 44kg) - Gold, Jennifer Tong (under 44kg) - Silver, Tegan Hartley (under 40kg) - Bronze.
Jack Claxton in a performance which demonstrated his growing ability to make the right decision during a fight, twice dominated fights against the national champion, losing the first controversially and winning when it mattered in the final. On his way to the final Jack defeated club mate Thomas Booth in the Semi-Final. Thomas worked had all day and stuck to the task in hand as he found his way to the bronze medal.
Adam Sawyers started the day in fine form as he won his first two fights in 30 and 24 seconds respectively. He continued to impress on his way to a hard fought final where he lacked the edge displayed in earlier fights.
Adam Mortimer in his first competition at this level fought in a manner which belied his inexperience and gave glimpses of what might be.
Laura Williams was another player taking a bow at this lievel fo rthe first time. Her first fight was against an international player. In a gritty performance she managed to last the full length of the fight. This set he tone for the rest of her fights.
Meg Gibson not to be out done in similar circumstances demonstrated a fighting spirit which will stand her in good stead in future competitions.
Shannon Moltby stepped up from under 12s to under 16s. She demonstrated great composure as she fought hard to start establishing herself at this level.
Fern Mortimer produced some find Judo as she continued the process of establishing herself as a competitive player. On her way to God she had a hard fought close battle with club mate Jennifer Tong who had demonstrated in her other fights that she was also making the grade as a competitive player.
Not to be out done Tegan Hartley also gave a sterling performance which bodes well for the future.
Sawyers: Multi Medal Winner
Adam Sawyers represented the club at the 12th Goole Senior and Youth Competition on the 15th June 2008.
Adam had 4 fights during the day resulting in a Gold medal in the Under 60kg category in the Youth competition and a Silver in the U66kg category in the Senior event.
His first three fights all lasted less than a minute and a half each. Adam won these fights with 10 point, fight winning throws, twice using his well practised Sode technique, and also using a Seoi-nage variant.
Adam showed a determination throughout the day, with good grip fighting and good speed.
In his final fight whilst outclassing his opponent and nearly winning with a drop Seoi-nage, a momentary lapse in concentration resulted in Adam being pinned to the floor by his opponent for a 10 point score.
In summing up the day, coach Helena Webster said "Its the best I've seen Adam fight".
Claxton takes up invitation
Jack Claxton continued to show his dominance of the Under 42kg category as he returned home with the Gold medal from the Goole Invitation Judo Championships. Showing good control and never looking in trouble he won all his fights with a contest winning Ippon score. Claxton showed good grip fighting as he moved in to show good examples of Tai-O-Toshi, O-Uchi-Gari and a leg sweep.
Team mates Thomas Booth and Sam Raper came home with Bronze medals. Booth in Under 46kgs showed great grip fighting and control as he won three of four contests. In his first fight he threw for a low point score and continued to fight on till the end of the fight to win. He won his second fight in convincing style with a great example of Tani-O-Toshi - a backwards throw for a 10 point Ippon score. After narrowly losing his third fight, he returned to winning form, as he showed good control and constant attacking to win on penalties after being very unlucky not to get a score.
Raper in Under 55kgs lost his first fight against a national medallist, despite getting his grips first and being the first to attack. He won his second fight in the first four seconds with Tai-O-Toshi, and lost his final fight in the final few seconds, after getting injured whilst he was ahead.
Jack Sawyers had a tough day as he entered a new weight category (Under 46kgs) and narrowly lost out for the Bronze medal. After winning his first fight with a Wazari hip throw, he lost his second fight with only 40 seconds to go after being in a winning position. In his final fight he lost after a momentary lapse of concentration. Sawyers showed good control throughout and demonstrated his ability to switch from fighting right handed to fighting left handed.
CLAXTON TOP OF THE CLASS AT BRITISH SCHOOLS CHAMPIONSHIPS.
Four members of Hull Judo Club competed at the British Schools Judo - Simon Hicks Memorial Championships at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on 29th March.
Jack Claxton again showed his authority in the U42kg category to bring home another Gold medal to add to his growing collection, winning all his fights in convincing form with maximum ippon scores from a range of techniques, including his trademark leg grab.
Adam Sawyers in U66kg had a difficult day in a weight category full of high quality competitors. Despite showing a good range of techniques, on this occasion the opponents proved to be just too strong.
Jack Sawyers after three hard fought contests lost out for the Bronze medal in the U42kg category, to a well executed Te-guruma sacrifice technique, having shown a determined effort in his previous fight to get an ippon with an O-uchigari.
Thomas Booth (U46kg) came up against some very difficult competitors, narrowly losing his first fight, winning his second fight with the Te-gurumasacrifice throw before being beaten in his final fight.
All the players did the club proud in their attitude to the event and their determination to succeed.
Players continue to bring home medals - The Durham Judo Championships.
Six players took part in the Durham Judo Championship on the 22nd March at the Spennymoor Leisure Centre, with all players fighting well and showing continued development.
Adam Sawyers rubber stamped his return to form by winning all his fights in convincing form to return home with the Gold medal in the Under 66Kg category. Adam showed continuing advancement in his Judo, putting into practice techniques, attitudes and ways of approaching contests which he had been focusing on recently during training. During the competition Adam used a wide variety of techniques including Te-guruma, Seoinage and O-uchi-gari.
Jack Claxton (U42Kg) returned home triumphant again, to continue his Gold medal winning form. Jack continued to show his technical prowess and his ability to adapt his way of fighting to the situation at hand. Jack won his second fight with a three technique combination, which started with a pickup followed by an attempt at Uchi-mata before finally throwing his opponent for Ippon with a leg grab.
Jack's first fight was against Jack Sawyers, who despite losing twice came away with the bronze medal. Sawyers won his first fight in 'Golden Score' (after the score was tied at the end of the two minute fight). Sawyers showed a calmer and more focused attitude to the days competition.
In the under 40Kg category Shannon Maltby fought well in three tough fights to add another Bronze to her medal haul. Shannon won her first contest with an impressive example of the Hari-Goshi leg sweep technique.
Thomas Booth had a very tough day of competition as he tries to establish himself in his new weight category of under 46Kgs. Despite coming up against players who where both larger and more experienced Tom showed good grip fighting and demonstrated that he was thinking about his Judo.
Benjamin Wong as our youngest player on the day continues to build on previous competition experience as he finds his feet in the competition arena. Ben fought well in what proved to be a higher calibre competition of than those he has fought in before.On the Gold Run
12 players spanning the clubs membership were at the Richard Dunn Sports Centre in Bradford on the 9th March for the Yorkshire and Humberside Individual Closed Championships.
Joshua Williams(U38K), Etain Hampshire (Over 44K) - who was forced to retire early due to injury and Sam Raper (U55K) all put in good performances, but failed to produce a win in what turned out to be a tough and hard fought competition.
6 players brought home Bronze medals; Benjamin Wong (U34K) had a mixed day, winning two fights and losing two. Ben continues to show potential and is building well on previous competition experience. Jade Dunn (U44K) had three very hard fought fights, including one against club mate Fern Mortimer. Jack Sawyers (U42K) came back from a quick loss in his first fight and a loss to team mate Jack Claxton in his second fight, to win his last two fights, the first with a hold down and his last fight with an Ippon scoring pick up technique. Shannon Maltby (U40K) pinned her opponent in her third fight for an Ippon score, after coming back from disappointing losses in her first two fights. Thomas Booth (U46K) had a difficult day in a tough weight category. After showing continued development both on the ground and in standing techniques he won two of his four fights, fighting with passion throughout the day. Abigail Chambers (U70K) won a very strong contest to start the day, and then came up against some heavier ladies, which resulted in two defeats in very hard fought contests.
Adam Sawyers (U66K) won two of three fights to return home with the Silver medal, winning his first fight in 15 seconds with a superb pickup techniqueand winning his final fight with a good example of Seoi-toshi.
Fern Mortimer (U44) and Jack Claxton (U42) both fought well, and showed progression in their competition fighting to come away with Gold medals. Fern won three of four fights with a particularly convincing victory in her final fight, demonstrating a throw for Wazari, which resulted in Kesa-Gatame, which she held on for a second Wazari to win the contest. Jack continued his winning form after the St. Helen's competition again showing some good technical judo, but also including good use of groundwork techniques to win two of his contests with the Kesa-Gatami hold down, finishing the day undefeated.
CLAXTON BRINGS HOME GOLD
Jack Claxton (U42 Kilos), Jack Sawyers (U42 Kilos), Thomas Booth (U42 Kilos) and Adam Sawyers (U60 Kilos) took part in the North West Age Banded Championships at St Helens. Jack Sawyers continues to make progress at this level of competition. Although he did not win any of his fights he demonstrated plenty of enthusiasm and determination. Thomas Booth managed to put on a creditable performance, losing both his fights by the narrowest of margins, but demonstrating his potential to become a force to be reckoned with at this level of competition. Jack Claxton produced a performance which involved some excellent technical and winning judo. He managed to win all his fights convincingly with Ippon scores; this meant all his five fights finished before the allotted time. He went on and deservedly won the Gold medal finishing the day as Champion. Adam Sawyers started well by winning his first fight, but things did not go to plan after that as he lost his second fight. He then went on to win his next fights. Losing his fifth fight of the day put him out of the competition. His performance was good in light of the fact that this competition marked his return from injury.
HULL JUDO CLUB CELEBRATE.
We held our annual awards evening at the Ennerdale Sports Centre in celebration of another successful year.
It is good to know that we have about 100 active players of all ages, including some in the veterans category.
The awards were presented across the full range of ages and abilities showing our strength in depth.
Awards were made as follows:
Novices of the year - Patrick Heywood, Alexander King, Jade Dunn, Adam Mortimer, Ryan Marrazza, Fay Horsfield
People of the year - Eamon West, Benjamin Wong, Shannon Maltby, Thomas Booth, Meg Gibson Gibbs, Abigail Chambers, Peter Barley
Players of the year - Andrew Towse, Matthew Neal, Jack Claxton, Gareth Parr, John Schofield
Players player of the Year - Adam Sawyers.
Club Person of the Year. - Yvonne Brown & Janet Webster.
The Awards Ceremony highlighted to everybody that Hull Judo Club is a caring family club.
Gareth Parr took the microphone to give an unexpected speech, giving his personal thanks to the Club, its coaches, its players and its larger family for supporting him during his ongoing chemotherapy treatment and for the fundraising event which raised substantial funds to assist his family. In an emotionally charged speech, Gareth thanked all the players for getting him to peak fitness, which assisted him during his operation and in his recovery.
The evening also included the Annual General Meeting with reports from the Chair, the Secretary, the Treasurer and the Membership Secretary. Three items were highlighted:
- The Chair spoke of the Bronze Club Mark Award gained not only for the way the Club managed its business but also the execellence of the coaching staff and their work.
- The Membership Secretary reported very good regular attendances at training sessions and paid tribute to the wonderful support received from parents. The Treasurer detailed the club's healthy finances.
- The Chair then advised the meeting that the club is near to gaining the Silver Club Mark Award and also gave information that in October 2009 the Club will have been in existence for 25 years. A major celebration will mark this event and a team is being put together to organise events to celebrate this milestone.