The Royal Marines Open Judo Championship attracts an Olympian 16 October 2023 Storyline: Judo The Commando Training Centre Royal Marines, Lympstone hosted the Royal Marines Open Judo Championship, with a new format for 2023. This year’s Championship was a step change on previous years with the gates being opened to not only other Services but also the civilian world. Nearly 50 fighters travelled from as far north as Newcastle, over from London and representatives from all three Services entered. Not only a widespread from the services and across the country but also a breadth of experience, ranging from the most junior novice fighters all the way up to an Olympian (Danny Williams – London 2012 Olympian, 2014 Commonwealth Champion). The command level event was a massive success and enabled the Royal Marines to develop not only its most junior fighters, providing everyone with at least 5 fights, but also carry out grading for the most experienced Dan Grades (Black Bets) to progress further. Once again supported by not only the Royal Marines Charity but also the British Judo Association who provided the international level officials essential for any competitive event. The whole weekend ran seamlessly with junior fighters in the morning on Sunday up to the heavy weight seniors in the afternoon. The “Heavy Duty medals” awarded were accompanied by a watch donation for each gold medallist from a London watch maker ‘Paul Bowman’. Every single person who entered and several of the spectators have already shown an interest for next year’s open and there are even a few of the junior players seriously considering joining the Royal Marines post A Levels.
