British Judo Association

British Judo Performance Research and Development Centre Launched

British Judo has entered into a new partnership with the University of Bath to launch a national British Judo Performance Research and Development Centre.

The work undertaken by the Centre will play an important part in the success of British Judo's performance programmes and will significantly contribute to its build up to London 2012 and beyond.

A key project will be the delivery of a Fast Track Coaches Programme led by renowned French coach Patrick Roux, which will accelerate the professional development of a group of young British coaches, in order that they have the best opportunity to prepare and coach athletes in the build up to 2012 and beyond. The initial programme will run for 12 months and will incorporate coaching and technical elements, performance planning, physical preparation and mental skills for developing top level judo players.

Another initiative will be to support a -48kg (women's extra light weight) talent identification project led by former World Champion Jane Bridge.

The Centre will also lead on the development of a Performance Research and Development Academy, which will bring together British Judo's sport science and sports medical practitioners along with the University of Bath staff.

Margaret Hicks Director of World Class Programmes said, "The intention is to create a framework within this Academy for research projects, which are very much performance coach led and will have a direct performance impact on players' training programmes and behaviours."

The Centre will be integral to the British Judo Performance Network, which is being developed across the UK, linking all British Judo Association clubs and Performance Clubs to Home Country Performance Centres.

At the heart of the Performance Network will be the British Judo Performance Institute (BJPI), which will become the hub site for the network and will be established in Dartford.

Karen Roberts, British Judo World Class Operations Manager said: 'To be truly world leading we need to be at the cutting edge of our sport. We hope that through this partnership British Judo becomes a world leader in international judo."

Professor Glynis Breakwell, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath, said: "We are pleased to have the opportunity to use the University of Bath's expertise in Research and Development to create applied solutions within Performance Judo, thereby supporting the efforts of the British Judo Association as they prepare for London 2012 and beyond."

Launching the Partnership at the University of Bath

Left to Right: Patrick Roux, Jurgen Klinger, Mike Callan, BJA Chairman Densign White, Margaret Hicks, Karen Roberts and Roy Inman

Media Contacts:

Emma Griffin

British Judo

(t) 07875 368495

Steve Ballinger

TeamBath press office

07765 071 683