A brief update from the JudoScotland Chair Marc Preston on activity in June.
Hope you’re all enjoying a well-deserved summer break and gearing yourselves up for the new season.
The month of July started with myself and my wife, Karen, representing JudoScotland at the Royal Garden Party at Holyrood Palace. Many of the guests were involved in sports, as well as representing different charities and community initiatives. It was a great privilege to accept the invitation, and a delightful afternoon was had by all (cucumber sandwiches and tea)!
Then on 2nd July I was part of the interview panel for the role of Head of Performance. I was delighted with the response to the position, and we were fortunate to have a wonderful shortlist with many top coaches from around the world.
On 4th July Katrina Downie was announced as the Team Scotland Judo Team Manager for the upcoming Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games – congratulations Katrina!
I went along to the National Team Championships in Walsall on 5th July. Huge congratulations to all our players who fought there. I was delighted to watch the most successful national team competing for Scotland in a very long time. I thought the standard of our players was fabulous and the team spirit at the event second to none from judoka and supporters alike! Whilst I was unable to stay down for the Veterans Championship the following day, it was great to have a strong contingent of Scots in contention with several JudoScotland staff cheering on from the stands.
On 10 July I was again part of the panel involved in the recruitment for the position of Performance Pathway Coach. These were all carried out online, due to the fact that most of the candidates were overseas (recruiting in holiday time)!
I’d like to take the opportunity to congratulate the successful candidates appointed for the positions – Alberto Borin, Head of Performance and Taka Kitahara, Performance Pathway Coach. We look forward to working with you as part of our team going forward.
We do believe in JudoScotland that we’ve made the best possible appointments to ensure success in our sport. I’d like to thank all the candidates who applied – the standard was extremely high. Good luck all for the future!
Next up, myself and Judith travelled to Austria to familiarise ourselves with their highly successful judo system. As per my previous updates, we had hosted Martin Poiger and Pepe Reuter from their Federation earlier in the year in Scotland. Thank you, Martin, for organising a great schedule with your team, to help us collect the information needed. I would like to thank Markus Moser, Sport Director, and Yvonne Boenisch, Olympic champion and Head Coach of Austrian Judo, for spending valuable time with us. The trip was absolutely invaluable in terms of the insights gained for JudoScotland as we enter this new exciting chapter.
Then it was time to down tools and get away for my family holiday – a lovely relaxing week in Italy.
Marc Preston, 7th Dan