Congratulation to Frankie & Allie Hyatt. Frankie  got 2-nd and Allie -3rd

The pictures for the tournament is uploaded to the site’s gallery.  Here is the link

The martial art of Judo is founded upon the ability to fully practice its techniques without sustaining injury.  This not only carries through our practice, it is also is part of our daily lives.  Ukemi is the practice of break falling and the development of the instinctive reflex of protective techniques when being thrown and sustaining a fall without injury.  Some of our junior members have yet to master this technique and some of our seniors have backed off from its practice.  The practice of Ukemi is for everyone and must be a serious part of our life in judo. Ukemi is one of the most essential techniques to learn in Judo, and the very first indispensable one the new student needs to master. Without the deep knowledge that he or she can endure a fall without getting hurt, the new student will apply excessive restrain in his learning and practice of any [...]

There has been much discussion lately about our curriculum and the training methods we provide at SFJI. When we consider the breadth of age of our Judoka membership from 5 years old to 67 years young the training methods require careful consideration of approach and understanding what the ultimate goals of each individual may be.  The youngest Judoka train with a basic course of development oriented toward a variety of benefits.  The goals can range from physical development, learning respect, self confidence, weight control, mental focus and competitive spirit.  As Judoka develop in their teens the basic foundation of judo in the true sense should have been fully absorbed.  It should go without saying that the formal understanding of the judo philosophy, respect, honor, technical development and a degree of athleticism has been developed.  Also, a passion for judo should have been instilled in the person leading to greater maturity.  [...]

Change has been unavoidable in the history of the martial arts.   Just as Jigoro Kano founded judo with a philosophical difference rooted in Ju-Jitsu to be what we know as Kodokan Judo, we are now experiencing the influence of many styles of judo from different parts of the world. My introduction to Judo was in 1960 at the age of nineteen.  At that time my Sensei, George Yoshida, led the oldest dojo in the country strictly following the Kodokan traditions.  It was only four years after being a beginner that a major change in judo happened, it became an Olympic sport.  With judoka from all over the world coming together, the spirit of competition was heightened.  It was not long before the compulsory study of Kata was overwhelmed by the focus on high level competition.  While there were always local and national tournaments the need to groom Olympians became strong. [...]