Led by their head instructor and guru Alexis Plantard, the team competed in both the Thailand National Judo and National Jiu Jitsu Championships on the weekend of Apr 5-7 in Bangkok and managed to secure a staggering 56-medal haul.
The judo competition was held in the morning of each day with 13 athletes from the Dojo team competing against over 600 fighters from more than 100 other clubs around the country.
A superb collective performance across both days of competition saw the team not only win 4 gold medals, 3 silver medals and 4 bronze medals, but also maintain their position as top-ranked team nationally in the under-12 age classification, an honour the team won last year when the tournament was held in Nakhon Si Thammarat.
Gold medals went to Gabin, Timur, Oscar and David, silver medals went to Tomo Janis and Danil, with bronze medals collected by Kiichi, Sota, Mayel and Oliver. Notable performances also came from Nathon and Luka who delivered admirable fifth place finishes in their bouts.
Not content with their impressive feat, and demonstrating their outstanding stamina and commitment, the 13-member team then raced across the capital on both days to join 12 other colleagues from the Phuket Dojo to compete as one team in the National Jiu Jitsu Championships at Rangsit University.
The 15th annual edition of the hugely popular tournament saw over 2,300 athletes from all across the country compete across three catgeories of jiu jitsu, newaza and no-gi and is used to identify top talent which is then selected to respresent at national level.
The Dojo team performed outstandingly well to secure a fourth place finish overall across all age and divisions against 84 clubs and 1,400 athletes, securing 11 gold medals, 13 silver and 21 bronze in the process.
Of note was young student Lea who won three gold medals and a special trophy for best athlete in her age group. Lead instructor Alexis also won three gold medals and a special trophy for best adult athlete.
Students Sota and Kiichi both won two gold medals and one bronze medal each, Sebastian won one gold and two bronze, Alex Ilia and Oliver won three silver medals each, while Meera won two silver and one bronze.
Rayan, Damir and Johnatan all won three bronze medals each, while Dominic won one silver and one bronze, Alexandre won one silver and Danil, Damian, Janis, Oscar, Timur and David all won one bronze each.
OUTSIDE THE COMFORT ZONE
Understandably, coach Alexis was very proud of his students, especially with them taking on two tournaments effectively at the same time.
“We are the only club that did both events,” he told The Phuket News.
“The judo and jiu jitsu federations are separate entities altogether. It is why the tournaments were on the same weekend, to effectively force clubs and athletes to choose one of the two sports.
“To compete in both was a logistical challenge for our team, absolutely,” he explained. “The two venues were 40km apart in Bangkok. When the team won in the judo they did not even get chance to take to the podium to collect their medals or celebrate as they had to jump straight into a taxi and head across town to compete in the jiu jitsu competition!”
“Fortunately my assistant coach was able to base himself at the jiu jitsu venue and oversee the team before I and the others were able to join him later in the day.”
Alexis also explained that typically students will select one or the other when to comes to the different disciplines. “Usually judo students do not compete in jiu jitsu and vice versa, mainly due to the different intricacies of each sport. However, I purposefully encourage my students to step out of their comfort zone to test themselves.”
It is an admirable tactic and one that is clearly paying dividends. In addition to their sparkling displays in judo and jiu jitsu, the Dojo team also claimed the top titles in the 12-14 age groups at the Thailand Kurash Wrestling Championships in Phitsanulok province in May last year.
What the team have achieved with just 25 athletes in a small 170 square metre gym tucked away in the Blue Tree complex is hugely impressive. Alexis ensures nobody rests on their laurels and is continually looking to improve. Next up five of the Dojo team head to the French National Judo Championships in May before seven of the team compete in the US Judo Open Championships in July.
“The Dojo will produce the next generation of world and Olympic champions, I am sure of that,” Alexis says. “It is time to make history.”
Everyone is welcome at the Dojo to learn judo, jujitsu, wrestling and self-defence. All levels and all ages. For more info visit: dojo@bluetree.fun or the Dojo at Blue Tree Facebook page.