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British Judo has announced
that the 2010 GB World Cup for women will take place on Saturday
2nd October at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.
The action packed day will
attract the world’s 2012 judo hopefuls fighting for their World
Ranking points, which contributes to their Olympic qualification.
The new World Ranking system,
announced by the International Judo Federation (IJF) in January
2009 includes a circuit of four Grand Slams (Paris, Moscow, Rio
de Janeiro and Tokyo), five Grand Prix (Hamburg, Tunis, United
States of America, Beijing and Abu Dhabi) and 17 World Cups, including
the GB World Cup, plus the Masters to be held in Korea this year.
Regarded as one of the
best staged on the World circuit, this will be the fifth year
running that the GB World Cup will be held at the NIA in Birmingham,
staged with assistance from UK Sport Lottery funding and Birmingham
City Council.
BJA Events Manager, Emma
Taylor said: ““I’m really pleased to confirm that the GB World
Cup for women in 2010 will once again be hosted at the National
Indoor Arena in Birmingham.
“We have a fantastic opportunity
to host a jam-packed event where spectators will now be able to
see all weight categories compete, including some of Britain’s
Beijing Olympians and the world’s top players.
“As this is the fifth year
of hosting this event and working in partnership with the NIA,
we are confident we will deliver another fantastic major event.”
Scott McCarthy, Chief Executive
Officer of the British Judo Association, said: “The GB World Cup
continues to grow and prosper and we are committed to staging
the best female event in the world in 2010.
“Judo must move to snappier
and quicker events in order to attract a wider audience and next
year’s event is a great step in that direction. We are really
excited about the possibilities.”
With the IJF’s recent changes
to the repechage system, a fighter must now reach the quarter-finals
in order to qualify for the repechage, so it is imperative to
have a high world ranking in order to obtain a favourable draw.
As British Judo moves into
the transitional period of the Olympic cycle, the GB World Cup
will be an important event in the elite British women’s calendar,
as they begin to concentrate on moving up the ranking list with
the home crowd advantage providing a significant boost.
Tickets will go on sale
next year, with exclusive offers available to BJA members. Ticket
availability will be announced on the BJA website.
©
David Finch
Media Contact:
Nicola Turner
British Judo Association
(t) 07854 244343
nicola.turner@britishjudo.org.uk
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