Okuri Judo Club

2003 Nationals

We are back safe and sound from the 2003 National Championships held in Las Vegas over the weekend. It was a weekend full of judo and very little Vegas sightseeing, but after all, we did go there for judo didn't we? Jorge started us off on Friday by competing in the Men's 81kg. He fought another brown belt. Jorge quickly found himself behind by two yukos. He managed to come back with a yuko throw and into a non-traditional pin that took the referee at least 10 seconds to recognize as a pin. Once the pin was called. Jorge managed to hold on for a koka. With about 1 minute left, Jorge attempted a tani-otoshi that the referee called a yuko for his opponent. On the video it is not clear who finished the throw, but it appears his opponent turned at the last minute causing Jorge to fall on his back. Jorge lost his focus after this and was later pinned. His opponent lost his next match and eliminated Jorge. Jorge did play well. He improved over last year's performance at Nationals and corrected a few things from the last tournament. Anita and Shannon went next in Friday afternoon's kata competition. Their kata looked good, but they didn't place. They are waiting for their scores to arrive in the mail. They know their final score, but cannot determine their actual technique scores. (An additional 20 points for the entrance and exit of the kata was added this year. This is 20 per judge, with 5 judges that could be 100 points.) Kim started off Okuri's Saturday competition with a bang. She played Masters this year, her first tournament in 3 years. Some say it looked like she never left. She started off with a fellow Texan from El Paso. In the first exchange Kim scored a wazari with a Kosoto Gake, but was unable to hold on for the pin. In the next exchange, Kim's opponent ran at her. Kim took control of the opponent and threw her for ippon with Tai Otoshi. The match lasted about 30 seconds. In Kim's second match, she fought a black belt from Kokushi (Sheridan's dojo in NJ). Kim managed to control her opponent throughout the entire match. She was given an early penalty for a "pistol" grip which was out of left field, but oh well. Two yukos (Kosoto Gake and Kouchi Gari) for throws and one yuko for two penalties for her opponent, Kim won the match at the end of the 3 minute match. With these two wins, Kim secured the GOLD medal and her National Masters Title! (See picture. Not the most fla ttering pic, but since it was for the gold medal, we had to buy it.) Victor also played in the Masters competition on Saturday. His first match was #74 (tells you how many people were there!) He fought well against a black belt but was pinned for ippon. In his second match he was more relaxed and did more grip fighting and attacks. He did attack with the dreaded drop Taiotoshi, but was unable to score. He was lost the match when his opponent secured the pin. Overall, Okuri Judo did very well in the 2003 Senior Nationals in Las Vegas. For some, it was their first appearance ever or in many years. They made OJC proud!