For information about joining the club and our beginners course for the new academic year see the
Getting Started page
While many people take part in Judo purely for recreation, competition is a fundamental aspect of Judo that allows you to put your training to the test (and it can be fun!).
Judo contests are typically of a 3 to 5 minute maximum duration although the ultimate aim is to finish the contest as quickly as possible by scoring the maximum "Ippon" score - the equivalent of a knockout. Ippon is scored by either : throwing your opponent cleanly on his back with force and control, holding your opponent down for 25 seconds, or securing a submission with an armlock or choke. If you are unable to score ippon then the winner at the end of the contest is determined by the best "lesser" score.
While not all members of the club are active in competition, those who are interested in this element of judo can find a range of competitions to take part in. Our primary focus each year is the BUCS student championships held in March and in recent years we have returned with several individual medals as well as silver and bronze medals in the team event. We are also keen supporters of other student competitions such as the London University Open and the USIST student team tournament held annually by the University of Sheffield Judo Club.
As a warm up for these events we get involved with the new Hampshire Team competition and other local training sessions.
The club has a longstanding record of competition success, particularly in the annual Student Championships. Our results page has a list of our past successes. Lots of old results are still to be added, so if you are a past member of the club with results to add or corrections, just drop us an email with details!