MARTIAL ARTS: With a record number of entries, this year's annual Mini Mons judo championships were full of intense competition. The Ipswich Judo Club hosted the competition for 16s and under at Northgate Sports Centre on Sunday.

MARTIAL ARTS

WITH a record number of entries, this year's annual Mini Mons judo championships were full of intense competition.

The Ipswich Judo Club hosted the competition for 16s and under at Northgate Sports Centre on Sunday.

This was the club's second competition out of the three it stages every year starting with the Ipswich Senior Open in March.

It attracted 230 contestants from all over Britain, with the furthest competitors travelling from Crewe and Wales.

The competition got under way after the weigh in to see what group in which they would be fighting.

The novices fought in yellow and red belts and the heaviest participants fought in orange belts.

These two categories were then further split into three groups which went on age. The minimum age group was eight to ten year olds, 11-13 and 14-16.

Ipswich Judo Club has been running these national competitions for nearly 20 years and the quality of entrants seems to get tougher each year.

With some of the strongest clubs in the country, Pinewood, Micklefield and Willesden there, the day was guaranteed to be full of fierce competition.

In the first stage the separate groups from the two different categories fought it out in pools. The

winners of each group went through to a knockout section to decide who picked up the gold, silver and bronze medals.

Members from St John's Ambulance were also there to see that the day ran smoothly, along with many Ipswich's volunteers. Profits from the event went to the club's fund, which would enable them to buy new equipment for training and competitions.

Gill Charlton, the event organiser, was delighted with the day's success. She said: "The day went without a hitch. The competitors battled hard on a day where the conditions were not ideal as temperatures soared into the twenties and it was an added bonus that our boys and girls scooped medals."

Members of the Ipswich Judo Club fought hard and did the club proud, gaining many medals of all colours in both the boys' and girls' events.

In the boys' events, David Kershaw won silver in the Under-34kg (Group 2B), beating the opponent he had already met in the final of the pools. He won with hold downs and an ippon.

Jack Bentley won bronze in the repercharge for the U-42kg (Group 1A), with O-goshi and tai otoshi style throws working well.

Ross Scarfe gained a bronze medal in the U-34kg (Group B), and did well as he had to fight off strong opposition from Pinewood competitors.

Luke Goldfinch in the U-38kg Group 1B, won another bronze medal with one good osoto-gari.

In Chris Vane's section, (U-34kg Group 1A), there were strong entries. He won all three of his pool fights with koshi gurumas and one hold down, but went out in the first round of the knockout, just

missing out on the medals.

In the girls' events, Jessica Parker won silver in the U-25kg Group 1A, with one of her contests going to extra time.

Parker managed to throw her opponent with morote gari seconds before the end of additional time.

Abbie Savoy, U-40kg, came second in her pool displaying some pleasing moves, but like Vane, lost in her first round of the knockout stage.

Emily Barber and Laura Mills tried hard in their first national competition but did not make it through to the knockout stage.

Pinewood Judo Club from Bracknell were clearly the strongest club in attendance achieving 13 gold, seven silver and two bronze medals.