Last week the Closing National Judo Championship in the city of San Salvador de Jujuy, with approximately 1,200 judokas from all over the country.
The south of Cordoba was represented by the judokas from the Shin Gi Tai school of Vicuña Mackenna, with seven competitors (Sebastián Alejandro, Lisandro Echecolanea, Simón Cocaña, Ramiro Magallán, Julia Illia and Margarita Fenoglio, who won a bronze medal) and Gerónimo Avaro, from the Baduy Judo Team school that operates in the Central Argentino club of Río Cuarto.
Anabel Vazquezsensei in Vicuña Mackenna, spoke with Al Toque Sports about the experience accompanying the judokas on their trip to Jujuy: “The boys always give their all, we travel with the federative group, also with boys from Villa María, San Francisco and other locations. Despite being a town, we managed to make judo grow in the region, to be recognized, and to make it known that there is a place in the south of Córdoba where judo is done, which brings medals and results.”.
The sensei expanded on the feeling about the judokas: “It is very nice that the boys make their own path, that they are becoming stronger with athletes and people.. “Judo is a difficult sport and the boys give it their all.”
Vázquez evaluated the year spent with judo in Vicuña Mackenna: “Every time I see that the kids take it more seriously. For me there is a lot of difference between a sportsman and an athlete, in my view they are two different things. It is quite hard work, a very big commitment. Very good results were achieved at the national level. There were many guys who debuted and made the podium. What happened this year was completely excellent. Grateful to the parents who trust us, along with Carlos Hurtado. Tesamos doing a great job, it was a very productive year. We work together with the Municipality, it is a very expensive sport, but the kids respond and bring the results they bring.”
There is a community between the judo that is practiced in Río Cuarto with the Baduy Judo Team and the school in Vicuña Mackenna: “It is very important that we can work together. We started to get together with our students because we have the same way of working. Habib (Baduy) is an athlete with a beautiful career and ended the year with the best of the best. Very proud to have a judoka like him in the region. We both aim for the personal growth of the boys. Beyond the results, we want them to learn to walk the tatami, give them the tools. The idea is to take bigger steps, but little by little,” said Vázquez.
Personally, Vázquez will begin to compete in the master circuit: “I am going to be in the veteran master in Caseros, province of Buenos Aires. It will be the first time I am going to compete. The idea is to get into a South American tournament next year and follow in Habib’s footsteps a bit. Maybe, compete on a global level.”
Photos: Courtesy Anabel Vázquez
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