Let’s try olympic sports

The idea was to introduce the next generation to a range of Olympic sports with judo and freestyle wrestling at the centre of the schedule, as Jim Toland (a former judo Commonwealth Bronze medallist) explains: “The two sports are very compatible and there is a growing trend within the world of martial arts to try new things and draw the best from each discipline.

“We had over sixty young people here doing just that and I think that their ability to grasp new initiatives gave us a pleasant surprise, it was certainly very refreshing.”

Judo is a well established sport within the North West with a long history of success but freestyle wrestling is relatively new to the area. There is an embryonic schools programme proposed for wrestling and of course the judo programme is already in place.

Nevertheless, both sports are keen to grow their participation base ahead of eagerly anticipated developments regarding the North West Regional Sports Campus in St Columbs Park.

Jim Toland added: “In the short term, there’s a strong likelihood that the city will have a top class facility servicing the needs of gifted judoka and wrestlers, I’m working hard with our current pool of talent and other coaches to find the best young people who possess the necessary skills such as balance, speed and commitment.

“These are exciting times and we’ve many partners supporting us such as Derry City Council, Sport NI and the Mary Peter’s Trust.”

There is no doubt that the participants had a great time and benefitted from the additional hours of expert coaching, Matthew McCrossan (15 years) from the Waterside said: “Watching the Olympic judo finals during the week has really been inspirational and of course the freestyle is up next, it’s made me even more determined to work harder.”

For those enthusiasts that might want to take up these sports, classes are running every Friday evening at 6.30pm in St Columbs Park Leisure Centre and the club is set up to receive beginners and develop intermediate and senior athletes.

During the summer the Longtower Judo club will also be in operation also starting at 6.30pm until 8.30pm for further details please contact Jim Toland on (0797) 659 1573.

For further information visit www.niwrestling.org and www.judoandmore.com or [email protected].