By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemdia.net

ONE of the most prestigious events for the international judo community is set to premier in the Bahamas as the country prepares to host the 2018 Judo Junior World Championships.

The Bahamas Judo Federation and the event’s Local Organising Committee officially launched the campaign to galvanise public support for the event, set for this October in the Atlantis resort’s convention centre.

According to BJF President D’Arcy Rahming, The Judo Junior World Championships will represent a major economic and cultural boost for the Bahamas and will showcase the country to millions of the sports followers worldwide.

“We are delighted to have been chosen to host this event, one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world. We expect a lot of economic activity for the Bahamas from this and we will be enhancing all ministries because judo is more than just sport, it is about value, creating better citizens and culture through the core principles of the sport,” he said, “We are excited because it brings together the experience of several organizations to make this event a success. The international body puts on 22 events a year, so they are experienced and accustomed to a certain standard, and I know they will be pleased with what we put out as a country. We will exceed all expectations and make this the greatest junior worlds for people to think about and talk about for years to come. This will not be a one-off event in October but there will be a buildup that involves all the stakeholders and the event will have an impact that resonates long after it is over.

Athletes from over 100 countries will participate, creating a atmosphere that will feature thousands of local and international patrons for the duration of the event. Dozens of networks will also broadcast the event.

Daniel Lascau, Sport Director for the International Judo Federation voiced the support of IJF President Marius Vizer.

“The Junior World Championships is an important event of our international calendar and of our strategy because the junior age category represents the future of our sport. Many big names before becoming World and Olympic Champions, performed first in Junior and everybody will look carefully at the results of the event to discover who will be the next generation of heroes,” he said, “The is the first tiem that we will come to the Bahamas to organize such a crucial competition and we are looking forward to coming to your beautiful and amazing country for the event. The IJF and Pan American Judo Confederation will help you and accompany you throughout all the steps of organization. We believe that having such a competition in the Bahamas will also help the development of judo in your country and in the whole region from a sports point of view as well as from an education point of view.”

The IJF saw fit to grant the Bahamas the role as hosts after an impressive showing during the Commonwealth Youth Games.

LOC Chairman, Wellington Miller, said it will represent another milestone moment for the country in the judo arena.

“This represents a proud, historic moment for sports and more particularly for Judo. In the Bahamas it is considered a relatively new sport but it has done a marvelous job over the past few years. They continue to impress the international community and this cake about because of the Commonwealth Youth Games and the job they did as hosts. Many countries wanted to host but because of the professionalism, they believed the Bahamas could host such an event,” he said, “Sports will again put the Bahamas on the map and work hard to ensure these kids of opportunities. This is an Olympic qualifier and anytime that is stamped on an event it is because they have trust in that federation that it is hosted to a specific standard.”

Bahamas Olympic Committee President, Romell Knowles, said the dedication toward the development of smaller scale sports has been paramount and paid dividends.

“It was less than 10 years, President Rahming visited our office at the BOC about being a part of the Olympic family, and the rest is history. We are now witnessing the presentation of these Judo World Championships. We welcomed the judo family in the thousands. I want to say to our visitors that you couldn’t have chosen a better location and sport. Judo is on the rise and it shows dedication commitment and vision. We were criticized with development of small sports but here we are with a sport like judo hosting on the world stage to know that we have small organizations to pull off a world class event speaks volumes for the Bahamas. I am sure the LOC will put on a fantastic display. I was taken aback at the presentation of judo at the Commonwealth Games I can tell you that presentation was on the level of the Pan Am Games.”

The 2017 edition of the games was hosted in Zagreb Croatia and featured 590 judokas from 83 countries and five continents.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Michael Pintard, said the Bahamas has expended tremendous resources on international events but in all cases, the local sports hs not benefitted directly.

“I believe judo has an opportunity to do something different in that regard,” Pintard said, “We wish that you would consider this the first in a long list of endeavors we can collaborate on in the future. The federation has done a tremendous job of putting Judo on the map regionally and they have also started a project that we think will have a tremendous impact in the region and that is to begin an academy. We would like to encourage the International Judo Federation to look at the model being developed as an opportunity to have tremendous impact. The Bahamas’ collaboration has sought to create this as an option where the rest of the millions of persons in the Caribbean and Latin America can come to the Bahamas and train. It would be a wonderful thing to establish an academy of an international standard that would attract persons to train. The government would make a commitment with the International Judo Federation to make this a reality.”

The Atlantis Resort’s convention center will be the venue and will feature a Bahamian cultural village among several other attractions. The event will also give locals and visitors alike a chance to learn about the Bahamas Judo Federation’s unique development program which has taken a number of at-risk youths off the streets and helped them flourish into top international competitors. I

In addition, the BJF will produce a reality TV show, to be broadcast both on local television and social media, which follows Team Bahamas through a series of challenges as the athletes prepare for the Junior Worlds.

IJF development director Jose Rodriguez said he is familiar with the Bahamas’ ability to host international sporting events from his track and field associations in the 1908s.

“Congratulations to the Bahamas for being chosen as hosts,” he said, “This is a fantastic event. The Bahamas is no stranger to me, I came from track and I used to come here often in the 80s and I know what Bahamas can do to put on a show. I was a big fan when I heard of it because I experienced the excitement of your event and your country. There will be many people here that will have never seen an ocean before and when you think about it, their first experience will be here in the Bahamas and what an experience they will have when they come here. I encourage you to get your schools ready to come out and support and get them to learn about the 80 plus countries that will be here. Show them what the Bahamas is all about and show them what you can do. It will be a great experience and I am sure that from this event, judo will be different in the Bahamas.”