YMCA holds Judo tilt this July

TROPHIES and medals will be up for grabs as the Young Men’s Christian Association is set to hold the All White Judo Invitational Age group Championship.

Set on July 29, YMCA will be hosting hundreds of judokas from all over northern Luzon including as far as the National Capital Region that will see three weight class in the 7 to 15-years-old and two in the 16-18 age group.

The open division, meanwhile, will have the 55-100kgs weight class for the men’s division and the -45 to 78 kgs weight class in the female division.

“Although this will be held here in Baguio, we have also sent our invitations to other provinces as far as Metro Manila to join the one day tournament,” said YMCA programs officer Bobby Vinluan.

The tournament is also part of a YMCA’s sports program, which aims to reach out to the grass roots levels and to help in the promotion of Judo as a sport which has been one of the region’s gold medal haulers in national and international competition.

In fact, YMCA’s judo program has been yielding positive results where it has recently sent Baguio judoka Floyd Derek Rillera to represent the country and the City of Baguio in the forthcoming London Summer School Sports Program on July 29 to August 12 at the St. Bede’s School in London, England.

Rillera was handpicked by the Philippine Sports Commission, in cooperation with the British Counci.

His participation to the event was confirmed in a letter dated February 17 from Philippine Sports Commissioner Joaquin Loyzaga.

The 15-day event, which will entail judo trainings and an international tournament, will also give the participants the opportunity to witness the London Olympics.

Floyd Derek, a 15-year-old who started his judo at age five with the YMCA Summer Frolics Program and a be-medaled judo player of the YMCA-Kaitagi Judo Club in various local and national judo tournaments, is a student of the Saint Louis University Laboratory High School and a proud son of YMCA Life Corporate members Lloyd and Daisy Rillera.

Interested participants who wish to join the tournament may call or text Vinluan at 0928-485-0661 or 0916-321-3687. (Roderick Osis)