Nathan in the Dubrovnic European Cup.
Nathan travelled Dubrovnic Croatia by himself to compete in the European Cup on the 1st April. It is very difficult participating in these events without a training partner or a coach. Even though he had done this now a number of times, the task is still made that much more difficult. That said, he had a convincing win in the first round against Lorito (ITA). In the second round (Round of 16), he drew Corrado (FRA) who had beaten Bekulov (RUS). A solid match with aggressive gripping, Corrado had the ability to attack quickly from off the cross shoulder grip and scored Waza-Ari with Kouchi-Gake. Nathan battled hard but could not get the score back and was caught for another Gake near full-time for a second Waza-Ari. Corrado won his next 3 matches and the Gold medal. In the repechage, Nathan then fought Bekulov who had an awkward cross-gripping style. Whilst not threatening, this gripping pattern put Nathan on the defensive and he conceded Shidos in the first half of the match for edge infringement and posture. The third shido came later and was quite harsh given Bekulov was not realistically looking for a throw with his unorthodox grip. Bekulov won his next 2 matches and fought for Bronze, leaving a disappointed Nathan, so close in these matches and looking to improve at this level of competition in the near future. Such a fine line between a close loss or a win which could result in medal rounds and a 9th or 11th place.
Josh and Kyle back from Japan
Along with Nathan, it was great to see Josh and Kyle all together on the mat after returning on Sunday from a month’s training in Japan. Nathan, Josh and Kyle are all looking very sharp and noticeably stronger on the mat with another block of overseas training and competition under their belts.
7 Budokan Athletes to Oceania in Tonga – 27-29 April 2017
Congratulations to the 7 Budokan athletes who will be competing as part of the Australian Team to the Oceania Continental Union Championships in Tonga in less than 2 weeks time:
Cadet Women U/57 – Saskia Brothers
Cadet Women U/63 – Amber Rudgley
Junior Women U/63 – Emma Leishman
Junior Men U/66 – Kyle McIndoe
Senior Women U/70 – Naomi de Bruine
Senior Men U/60 – Josh Katz
Senior Men U/66 – Nathan Katz
Reserve Cadet Men U/60 – Bjorn Tandean
On Tuesday night 11th April, Budokan presented first-time Australian Team representatives Saskia, Amber and Emma with their IJF back-patches. Congratulations and wishing you all a successful competition.