Samedi 7 mai, le Severac Judo Club organized an exceptional event in the entertainment room aimed at giving back to his former teacher Joël Phénix the palmes d’or of judo, the highest distinction awarded by the French federation to a teacher.
Originally from the department of Dordogne, which he loves, Joël started judo in 1965 and since then he has devoted a large part of his life to this noble discipline. After a remarkable career as a young judoka and good results in competition, he joined INSEP and obtained the Brevet d’Etat 2.
He began teaching judo as a teacher in 1976 until 2020, i.e. 44 years in the service of the many clubs where he taught and for the benefit of several generations of judokas, many of whom obtained their black belt thanks to him.
Joël Phénix officiates first of all in his home town of Ribérac (Dordogne), from 1976 to 1978, then he arrives in Millau and becomes a true Aveyronnais by adoption. He taught in the city of gloves from July 1978 until 2000, in Meyrueis (Lozère) in parallel and finally in Séverac-le-Château from 2005 until 2020, no less than 42 years in the service of southern Aveyron judo and therefore 15 years in the Judo Club of Sévérac.
During this period, he was at the initiative of the creation of the judo section of Rivière-sur-Tarn in 1991 which has been part of the Judo Club Sévérac since 2018. Of course, he also put his skills at the service of training by supervising numerous technical courses at the departmental level.
Many spectators
He also contributed to the organization of the first Challenge Michel Rohi, a teacher who also worked enormously to revitalize judo in the department and more particularly in the south of Aveyron.
Before the presentation of the gold palms by the youngest judoka of the club, all the practitioners in the presence of former black belts trained by Joël gathered on the tatami for a demonstration.
In front of a crowd of spectators, the fifty or so judokas performed the traditional salute followed by a warm-up. The youngest of the baby judo section then carried out a first demonstration of work on the ground followed by a presentation by the young people of a kata, imposed figures, adapted to young practitioners. Finally a kata demonstration was performed by the adults.
At the end of these presentations and before the presentation of his distinction to the recipient, the president of the club, Annick Caronconcluded his speech with these words: Joël, you have reached the rank of 4th Dan Black Belt, you have an innate sense of judo, it is your passion and you can be proud to have transmitted this passion to the majority of your countless students. Even if you are officially retired, we greatly appreciate your regular participation in club training, not under your direction, but under the authority and the Master that you represent for all of us. In view of your busy career and the services you have rendered for the development of judo in southern Aveyron, I have the honor of presenting you with the Palmes d’Or through the youngest of our practitioners. »
This very friendly and emotional ceremony continued with a snack for the young people and an aperitif for the adults. It was an exceptional event for the club and for Joël Phénix.
