University of Bath student Gemma Howell won her first Grand Prix judo medal for two years after producing a string of excellent performances in Georgia. The Sport & Exercise Science student, competing in the -63kg weight division, beat judoka ranked 30, 20, eight and nine in the world on her way to a superb silver in the Tbilisi Grand Prix. “I’m really happy, this silver is the best senior medal I’ve won so far,” Howell...
Team Bath judoka Jan Gosiewski and Gary Hall (pictured left) gained valuable Rio 2016 Olympic Games qualification points with fifth-placed finishes at last weekend’s Prague European Open. University of Bath PhD student Gosiewski’s strong run in the -73kg competition was only ended in the quarter-finals by a golden-score ippon from reigning Olympic champion Mansur Isaev of Russia. Gosiewski, who had beaten former European Championship medallist Hasan Vanlioglu of Turkey in the opening rounds, dropped into the...
The road to Rio will travel through the Czech Republic, Peru, Argentina, Georgia and Turkey for University of Bath judoka Jan Gosiewski over the next few weeks. So ahead of his final push for a dream Olympic place in Team GB, the 27-year-old has launched a crowd-funding campaign to help cover the costs of his extensive travels. The global nature of judo means that Gosiewski has to go around the world to take part in...
Six of the most talented young judoka in the South West last week spent time with Team Bath's high performance judo squad as part of the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) programme. The year-long programme, run in conjunction with the British Judo Association (BJA), is designed to provide young athletes aged 16-18 with the opportunity to experience the lifestyle of performance athletes. At the same time they are helped towards earning UCAS-recognised sports qualifications which equate to two...
University of Bath judoka Jemima Duxberry made an encouraging return from long-term injury as she won a bronze medal at an international club event in Belgium. The result was all the more impressive as it was also the first time the Sports Performance student had competed in the U78kg weight category. Duxberry, who is supported by the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS), had previously fought in the U70kg division before being sidelined for more than...
Judoka who train at Team Bath won three golds and eight medals in total during an impressive weekend at the British Judo Championships in Sheffield. University of Bath Sport Performance student Prisca Awiti-Alcaraz (pictured second from left), who is supported by a King Scholarship, set the tone on Saturday as she was crowned as national junior champion in the -63kg weight division. The following day’s Senior Championships saw Gary Hall, a bronze-medallist at the Glasgow 2014...
Team Bath Judo Club’s Ben Fletcher gained more valuable qualification points on the road to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games as he struck gold at the African Open Championships in Mauritius. The 23-year-old, coached by Juergen Klinger at the University of Bath, dominated all of his fights in the under-100kg weight division to claim the third international title of his career and his second in 2015, following his success in Tunis in January. After overcoming...
There were two silvers and a bronze medal for Team Bath’s elite judoka to celebrate when the European Open took place in Scotland and Portugal at the weekend. Tom Reed reached the under-81kg final at the men’s event in Glasgow, while Ben Fletcher strengthened his grip on a Rio 2016 Olympic Games qualification place with bronze in the under-100kg division. And over at the women’s event in Lisbon, Megan Fletcher won a silver medal in...
It is exactly 300 days until the Rio 2016 Olympic Games get under way – and Team Bath’s elite judoka face a crucial competition as they bid to reach Brazil. Valuable qualification points for the Games are up for grabs at the European Judo Open, which takes place this weekend in Glasgow for men and Lisbon for women. Among those heading to Scotland is Ben Fletcher, pictured, who currently meets the qualification criteria for Rio...
Athletes, students, coaches and graduates at the University of Bath are excitedly counting down to Rio 2016, with just one year to go until the Olympic Games get under way. Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European medallists are among the many athletes from a wide range of sports aspiring to be Brazil-bound in 12 months’ time. Bringing home just how close the Games are is the fact that the University of Bath is staging a Rio...
