Last year, marking the tenth anniversary of the Zagreb Grand Prix, the inclusive Croatian Judo Federation organised a kids camp free of charge for members of the federation, attracting more than 600 participants to train, not only together, but with Olympic, World and European Champions including Majlinda KELMENDI and KARAKAS Hedvig.
It was a blinding success, and afterwards, the young fans, along with their clubs, attended the Grand Prix event and contributed to the electric atmosphere. Due to the great success, the federation is naturally looking to go bigger and better during the Senior European Judo Championships 2024, now only seven weeks away! Between the 25th and 27th of April, join the EJU KIDS CAMP 2024!
Already on the roster we have Olympic and World silver medallist for Azerbaijan, Rustam ORUJOV who is member of the athlete’s commission as well as recently appointed Sport Commissioner for the European Judo Union, but in whatever context, he is a living legend and an icon for these young judoka. Alongside Orujov we have Slovenia’s 2016 Olympic champion and Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Tina TRSTENJAK who is now moving around the world, embedded both in the IJF Referee Commission as a supervisor and educating coaches with the IJF Academy. EJU Judo for Children Commissioner and Portugal’s first Olympic medallist in judo, Nuno DELGADO, will also be in attendance, and it seemed that the experience was memorable for Karakas as she will be returning once again.
Already, the Croatian Judo Federation are anticipating over 1000 young judoka between the ages of 8 and 15, and to encourage international participation, federations are invited to bring a coach and 9 children for the camp. The European Judo Union will be responsible for accommodation and full board during the camp, so don’t miss out on these memorable training sessions, workshops and of course, the Senior European Championships!
With the deadline closing in on the 10th of March, be sure not to miss out and register HERE!
Author: Thea Cowen