The Nigeria Judo Federation (NJF), at the weekend, disclosed that the National Judo Open Championship would hold from May 13 to May 21 at the Delta State University (DELSU) Sports Complex, Abraka.
According to NJF President, Musa Oshodi, the judo championship, aimed at discovering fresh talents in the sport, will also serve as trials for players representing the country at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games’ qualifiers billed for the Niger Republic in early June.
The Niger Republic Championship, according to Oshodi, is one of the 2024 Olympics qualifiers Team Nigeria will participate in this year.
“The National Judo Open in Delta State will bring all judokas across Nigeria together to compete in all categories of the sport, including cadet, junior, senior, and all age grades.
“The NJF expects to get the best female and male athletes from the championship to represent the country in the Olympics qualifiers.
“The athlete’s rankings and grades in the Delta Championship will justify their participation in the Judo Open Championship in Niger Republic.”
Oshodi said the NJF is striving to groom more talents from the grassroots and also expose the experienced stars to more competitions to keep them abreast with modern rudiments of the sport.
He also said that the federation is trying to improve the technical and officiating aspects of judo through collaboration with DELSU which has yielded a five-day referees and coaching course slated to begin at the Indoor Sports Hall of the university from May 13.
NJF Secretary, James Eakyns, said that certificates would be awarded to participants at the end of the program.
