The Largest Training Camp Ever Held in Brazil Begins on Tuesday
Judokas from 13 countries, including Brazil, will be staying for ten days in Saquarema, in Rio de Janeiro.
Over the next ten days, Saquarema, located in Região dos Lagos of Rio de Janeiro, will be hosting the best world judo athletes for the International Training Camp organized by the Brazilian Judo Confederation (BJC) in partnership with the Olympic Committee of Brazil (COB). National teams coming from 12 countries will be sharing the mats with the Brazilian athletes within the biggest event of its kind held in Brazil and will be staying at the Volleyball Development Centre (VDC) until February 7th.
The activities will be attended by around 200 athletes from judo traditional countries such as Japan, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, the United States as well as from emerging ones like Portugal, Israel, Slovenia, Lebanon, Ireland and Austria. The Brazilian delegation will be the largest team considering the number of judokas, with 85 athletes - 61 senior and 24 junior.
The high level of this training proves the consolidation of activity in the international calendar. "The foreign national teams already recognize the quality of our training, which means that every year we have more teams and more top athletes coming to Saquarema," says Ney Wilson, BJC’s Performance Director. There will be 22 judokas-ranked in World Top Three in their respective categories and six ranking leaders.
Among the big names participating in this exchange are the seven times world champion and Olympic champion Teddy Riner (FRA), the Olympic medalists Dimitri Peters (GER), bronze at London 2012, Henk Grol (NED), bronze in London and Beijing, Marti Malloy (US ), bronze in London, Kayla Harrison (USA), Olympic and world champion and world champion in 2013 in Rio, Yarden Gerbi, who arrived in Rio on Monday, 26th, with the national team of Israel.
The Brazilian team will also count on its main judokas - the last champions of the Olympic Selective Competition held in December 2014 and many of the world and Olympic medalists such as Mayra Aguiar, Sarah Menezes, Erika Miranda, Ketleyn Quadros, Rafaela Silva, Maria Suelen Altheman, Felipe Kitadai, Tiago Camilo, Luciano Correa, Leandro Guilheiro and Rafael Silva.
The other teams, including Brazil’s, come to Saquarema on Tuesday, 27th, and the same day they already put on their kimonos to start the training at 17h (GMT). The activities continue the following days in two periods until February 7th.
