Belfast’s Kookateki Judo Club has become the Olympic sport’s first club in Northern Ireland to receive the Sports NI Clubmark accreditation.

Sport Northern Ireland Clubmark is the country’s new quality standard for junior sports clubs. The programme aims to identify, develop, accredit and recognise high quality junior sports clubs and the contribution that they make to the development of sport in Northern Ireland.

Ryan Haire, Partnership Officer with Belfast City Council, presented the award to Jonathan Cooke, senior club coach at the Grove Wellbeing Centre, one of the club’s three venues.

The highly-popular club also train at Ballysillan Leisure Centre and Holy Family Primary School Newington.

The club is led by husband and wife, Jonathan and Wendy Cooke, who have spearheaded the club’s charge to notoriety in the community.

Jonathan said: “The award is a testament to all the hard work put in by the members of the club. It raises our profile and will ensure the club is well on its way to producing elite judo players of the future”.

“Staging judo in three locations is certainly a challenge but we work together to manage the responsibilities and I really relish my role.”

Wendy added: “The idea for Kookateki judo club came about while Jonathan was coaching fitness in the local schools.

“He saw an opportunity to give people in the area a chance to participate in a fantastic sport which allows adults to become fit and children to burn off all their excess energy.”

Clubmark NI has also been given the ‘thumbs up’ by parents and other judo clubs who view accreditation as an endorsement of the club. The club now plan to keep progressing, developing their coaches and implementing their on-going club development plan.

For further information and training times please contact Jonathan Cooke on 07979 004014.