LONDON 2012 HOPFEULS MARK NEW CHAPTER FOR JUDO IN WALES
29 Oct 2009
A new chapter for judo in Wales has begun today (Thursday 29th October 2009), as the doors officially opened to the Sports Council for Wales’ new £1.1million National Judo Centre.
A formal training and competition base, the National Judo Centre sits within the Welsh Institute of Sport (WIS) in Cardiff and is the next step towards developing a house of Welsh sport in the capital city.
Already the Welsh Institute is home to ten national squads, including badminton, table tennis and gymnastics. Its sports science and medicine facilities attract some of Wales’ most talented and most promising sportsmen and women.
Philip Carling, Chair of the Sports Council for Wales, comments:
"We’re delighted to have opened the doors to our stars of the future and to have provided them with a fantastic foundation of opportunity from which to build on. This new facility adds another string to our bow in Wales and will play a major part in ensuring our young judo talent has the best possible chance of excelling on the international stage; the Welsh Judo Association is now in a position to deliver on this investment and we look forward to a bright future for the sport." 
Former Olympic and World Champion, Kosei Inoue, marked the occasion in traditional judo style, by making the first throw on the mats with one of Wales’ potential future medallists, Sam Hill, and said:
"I am very proud to help open this important new dojo. Thank you to the Welsh Assembly Government for their support of our sport. This is a wonderful facility which will help the judo players from Wales to develop themselves. I am sure they will succeed in competitions and also in judo as a way of life."
A further nine of the nation’s future medal hopefuls were also on hand to celebrate the launch of their new state-of-the-art training base which will cultivate Welsh talent in readiness for London 2012 and beyond.
The new facility consists of a training arena on the first floor – which includes a 26m x 14m permanent mat area, a climbing wall to help develop the strength of the players and seats for 80 spectators. A comprehensive sports science and medicine centre has also been developed, which is already benefitting athletes across a number of sports.
After advocating the need for a dedicated facility to rival those across the border, Keven Williams, Chair of the Welsh Judo Association, expressed his delight in the National Judo Centre opening:
"We are delighted that the National Judo Centre has come to fruition after many years of hard work. The Welsh Judo Association is pleased to show the way in the development of the House of Sport here at the Welsh Institute of Sport. There are great opportunities ahead for Judo in Wales, on behalf of the future generations of players, thank you to everyone who has made this possible."
The Heritage Minister Alun Ffred Jones said:
"I’m very pleased to see this new dojo opening at the Welsh Institute of Sport and it will clearly be of great benefit to judo in Wales. It adds another international class sporting facility to Wales’s already impressive roster and will gives the sport a home in Wales that it has not had before. This investment by the Sports Council for Wales is an investment in the future and one that will hopefully bear fruit at international competitions in years to come."
Check out our behind the scenes clip:
