AKJA Judo National Championships 2019

AKJA Judo championships fight

I’ve recently participated in the Australian Kodokan Judo Association National Championships 2019 at Cairns, QLD in both, Kata and Shiai (fights).

In the Kata tournament, I teamed up with Damon Ellis, from Zenyo Judo. Close to the competition, my original partner was unable to participate, so Damon kindly accepted to replaced him at the last minute.

With only a few hours of practice a couple of days before the comp, we managed to participate in all the three Katas contested in the competition. It was a great tournament, with excellent Kata demonstrations and I got valuable feedback to keep learning and improving.

Kata, means “form” in Japanese and is a formal system of prearranged exercises performed by two judokas in a precise and harmonious manner.

The first kata was Nage no Kata which contains 15 of the main standing techniques in Judo.


The second one was Katame no Kata. This one has the main ground techniques distributed in three sets: holds, choques and armlocks.


The third one was Kime no Kata which shows Judo techniques applied against attackers, including some techniques against daggers and Japanese swords


In Shiai (fights), I participated in three categories: Seniors -73 kg, Veterans -81 kg and the Open Weight division, with 6 fights in total. It was a great experience, especially fighting with heavier opponents.

I’m posting below the videos I have. Wins and losses but, most importantly, enjoying Judo!

Seniors Under 73 Kg


Open Weight Division


Open Weight Division


Open Weight Division


Open Weight Division


Veterans Under 81 Kg


Finally, some photos from the championships: