Sunday, November 7, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
One Year On
Today marks one year from the lowest point in my athletic career. One year ago I was lying on a surgeon’s table. I did not know if the reconstruction of my elbow would allow me to eat with a knife and fork again, let alone compete and chase my Olympic Dream.
Everything seemed to have gone wrong. On top of the surgery I was dealing with:
• unsuccessfully balancing coaching a club and training myself,
• losing contact with my coach,
• a form slump that had seen me drop from my National #1 ranking (which I had held for over 2 years straight),
• missing selection for the World Championship, and
• missing my university exams due to injury.
As if this wasn’t enough, then the IJF announced it was changing the rules of Judo from 2010, banning pretty much every technique I did well.
To be honest, I nearly gave up at this point.
I had trained for 17 years in a certain style of Judo. All I could do was wonder how the hell was I going to recover and essentially learn judo from scratch in time for the Olympic Qualification process, which was only seven months away.
A conversation with 3-time Olympian Daniel Kelly brought me round. He just flat out appealed to the ‘meathead’ in me. He said “what, are you going to give up? Is that who you are?” I decided that when I quit my sport, it would be on my terms, not on a hospital bed and not in a referee’s meeting.
I have been on the grind ever since. I decided that every rehab exercise I was given I would double and every target I was set I would beat. As a result, I was able to compete13 weeks after the operation (not 24 like the docs wanted, but shhhh).
Things have definitely improved for me. I am now #1 in Australia again, #1 in Oceania and World #29. I am well and truly on track for London 2012.
Every day I reflect back and remember how low I was. It motivates me to run an extra mile, lift an extra rep and fight an extra round; and I wonder if I would have this work ethic if I hadn’t gone through what I did.
Ivo
‘Problems are opportunities in disguise.’
Henry J. Kaizer
Everything seemed to have gone wrong. On top of the surgery I was dealing with:
• unsuccessfully balancing coaching a club and training myself,
• losing contact with my coach,
• a form slump that had seen me drop from my National #1 ranking (which I had held for over 2 years straight),
• missing selection for the World Championship, and
• missing my university exams due to injury.
As if this wasn’t enough, then the IJF announced it was changing the rules of Judo from 2010, banning pretty much every technique I did well.
To be honest, I nearly gave up at this point.
I had trained for 17 years in a certain style of Judo. All I could do was wonder how the hell was I going to recover and essentially learn judo from scratch in time for the Olympic Qualification process, which was only seven months away.
A conversation with 3-time Olympian Daniel Kelly brought me round. He just flat out appealed to the ‘meathead’ in me. He said “what, are you going to give up? Is that who you are?” I decided that when I quit my sport, it would be on my terms, not on a hospital bed and not in a referee’s meeting.
I have been on the grind ever since. I decided that every rehab exercise I was given I would double and every target I was set I would beat. As a result, I was able to compete13 weeks after the operation (not 24 like the docs wanted, but shhhh).
Things have definitely improved for me. I am now #1 in Australia again, #1 in Oceania and World #29. I am well and truly on track for London 2012.
Every day I reflect back and remember how low I was. It motivates me to run an extra mile, lift an extra rep and fight an extra round; and I wonder if I would have this work ethic if I hadn’t gone through what I did.
Ivo
‘Problems are opportunities in disguise.’
Henry J. Kaizer
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Unbelievable
most of what i post is related to my training and/or competing but i thought i had to post this. this guy is unbelievable and makes the impossible look easy. he must train like a madman!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
NSW OPEN 2010 66 kg SEMI FINAL
This is my semi final at NSW Open this year, look out for the newaza at the end
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
MMA FIGHTER!!!
Hey guys I stepped (WAY) out of my comfort zone on Friday. There was one last thing I had to do before my training break and it was making my MMA debut last Friday night.
I am not about to join the UFC, but I do cross train in BJJ as well as submission grappling and have done some boxing. I have wondered for a long time how I would go in MMA and when I was offered this fight and realised it didn't get in the way of my Olympic training I thought I should give it a shot.
I was the semi-main event of the Style Wars card and fought against Rob Pryde from Numurkah Muay Thai.
I was able to get the fight to the ground pretty quick with a big double leg take down. From there I worked some ground and pound until my opponent gave up his back. From there I locked in a rear naked choke and he tapped out at the 2 minute mark of the fight.
It was a crazy adrenaline rush after that and felt unbelievable given how much training and competing i've done lately. The relief that I could go on my break on a win was an awesome feeling. I am not sure if and when I will fight MMA again because my dream of getting to the Olympics far outweighs my curiosity in MMA.
From here I will have 2 weeks off to re-introduce myself to my family as well as catching up on uni and work. From there I will begin my training block in preparation for the Samoa World Cup, Korea World Cup, Japan Grand Slam and China Grand Prix in November-December. These events are all Olympic Qualifiers so with some good preparation and solid performances I could be well on my way to London 2012 by Christmas!
I am not about to join the UFC, but I do cross train in BJJ as well as submission grappling and have done some boxing. I have wondered for a long time how I would go in MMA and when I was offered this fight and realised it didn't get in the way of my Olympic training I thought I should give it a shot.
I was the semi-main event of the Style Wars card and fought against Rob Pryde from Numurkah Muay Thai.
I was able to get the fight to the ground pretty quick with a big double leg take down. From there I worked some ground and pound until my opponent gave up his back. From there I locked in a rear naked choke and he tapped out at the 2 minute mark of the fight.
It was a crazy adrenaline rush after that and felt unbelievable given how much training and competing i've done lately. The relief that I could go on my break on a win was an awesome feeling. I am not sure if and when I will fight MMA again because my dream of getting to the Olympics far outweighs my curiosity in MMA.
From here I will have 2 weeks off to re-introduce myself to my family as well as catching up on uni and work. From there I will begin my training block in preparation for the Samoa World Cup, Korea World Cup, Japan Grand Slam and China Grand Prix in November-December. These events are all Olympic Qualifiers so with some good preparation and solid performances I could be well on my way to London 2012 by Christmas!
Monday, September 13, 2010
World Judo Championships 2010
Hi guys quick update on what's been up with me. I am in Narita Airport about to fly home from the World Judo Championships. I left home 3 weeks ago bound for Miami where I contested the Miami World Cup and US Open. I lost first round in the World Cup which was disappointing because I fought well below my best and could easily have won a few fights. At the US Open I was really sick with tonsilitis and felt horrible but I managed to fight pretty well and win 3 contests ending up in 7th place.
From there we (Aus Team) travelled to Tsukuba University in Japan for a training camp in preparation for Worlds. The camp was pretty hard because there was 12 nations basing themselves at Tsukuba before worlds. Training with Japan, Russia, Portugal, Greece etc was hard but perfect preparation for Worlds.
At Worlds I was able to submit my first opponent with a choke and my second with an armlock. In the round of 32 I lost to the world number 9 from Slovenia by getting thrown for Ippon (full point) and that eliminated me from the competition. Making the top 32 got me 40 valuable points towards Olympic Qualification.
All in all I won 5 fights and lost 5 fights all against world class opposition and was competitive in all so I am very happy with my progress.
Now I have to fly home and rest for a couple of days before my MMA debut on Friday night against Rob Pryde on the Style Wars card. It's very exciting for me to get a chance to test my skills in a new environment and I feel in the best shape ever so I am confident of a strong result.
That's all from me.
From there we (Aus Team) travelled to Tsukuba University in Japan for a training camp in preparation for Worlds. The camp was pretty hard because there was 12 nations basing themselves at Tsukuba before worlds. Training with Japan, Russia, Portugal, Greece etc was hard but perfect preparation for Worlds.
At Worlds I was able to submit my first opponent with a choke and my second with an armlock. In the round of 32 I lost to the world number 9 from Slovenia by getting thrown for Ippon (full point) and that eliminated me from the competition. Making the top 32 got me 40 valuable points towards Olympic Qualification.
All in all I won 5 fights and lost 5 fights all against world class opposition and was competitive in all so I am very happy with my progress.
Now I have to fly home and rest for a couple of days before my MMA debut on Friday night against Rob Pryde on the Style Wars card. It's very exciting for me to get a chance to test my skills in a new environment and I feel in the best shape ever so I am confident of a strong result.
That's all from me.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
MIAMI
Hey folks I thought it was about time I fill you in on my latest situation.
Well i am sitting in my hotel room in Miami at 5:30 am because as usual I am suffering from a bit of insomnia.
Before coming to Miami I competed last weekend in the NSW Open. It was only 6 days after Oceania and not ideal but considering I am still trying to catch up on points from the 6 months i missed last year I had to compete.
The competition went well, i won my preliminary, quarter final and semi all by ippon after having thrown with wazari already and I felt jaded but Judo was good.
In the final I had my clubmate Ryosuke Miwa. We had fought twice before and gone to decision both times (1 win, 1 loss). This time I came out and threw him for wazari with 1 sided kata guruma after 30 seconds. I kept applying pressure and came close with a few more attacks. For the first time in 3 weeks I felt fast, fluid and comfortable, then he slid under me for drop seio and got me for ippon!
Frustration is an almighty understatement for how I felt. However looking back at my previous 2 competitions where I won gold but didn't feel or fight great I am actually pretty positive this time.
We (australian team) arrived last night in Miami after about 30 hours of travel and settled in to our hotel. Its very, very nice and has everything we need here which makes life easier.
I managed to get internet access and found out that the IJF has updated the World Ranking List and I slot in at NUMBER 33 in the WORLD!
I am hoping that is high enough to be seeded here and make my life a little easier.
My body feels pretty good right now and I am really looking forward to competing at this level again. I feel I have made serious progress in recent months and can't wait to put it all together and notch up some Olympic Qualification Points.
If anyone wants to follow the results they should be available live at ippon.org
Ivo
Well i am sitting in my hotel room in Miami at 5:30 am because as usual I am suffering from a bit of insomnia.
Before coming to Miami I competed last weekend in the NSW Open. It was only 6 days after Oceania and not ideal but considering I am still trying to catch up on points from the 6 months i missed last year I had to compete.
The competition went well, i won my preliminary, quarter final and semi all by ippon after having thrown with wazari already and I felt jaded but Judo was good.
In the final I had my clubmate Ryosuke Miwa. We had fought twice before and gone to decision both times (1 win, 1 loss). This time I came out and threw him for wazari with 1 sided kata guruma after 30 seconds. I kept applying pressure and came close with a few more attacks. For the first time in 3 weeks I felt fast, fluid and comfortable, then he slid under me for drop seio and got me for ippon!
Frustration is an almighty understatement for how I felt. However looking back at my previous 2 competitions where I won gold but didn't feel or fight great I am actually pretty positive this time.
We (australian team) arrived last night in Miami after about 30 hours of travel and settled in to our hotel. Its very, very nice and has everything we need here which makes life easier.
I managed to get internet access and found out that the IJF has updated the World Ranking List and I slot in at NUMBER 33 in the WORLD!
I am hoping that is high enough to be seeded here and make my life a little easier.
My body feels pretty good right now and I am really looking forward to competing at this level again. I feel I have made serious progress in recent months and can't wait to put it all together and notch up some Olympic Qualification Points.
If anyone wants to follow the results they should be available live at ippon.org
Ivo
Monday, August 16, 2010
OCEANIA
I haven't posted for a bit because i have been so busy training my butt off and fighting.
I spent a bit over a week at the Australian Institute of Sport preparing for the competition with hours of randori and fitness work.
It was a hell of a grind but came through uninjured.
The competition was small with only 8 in my division but my draw did me no favours because my first fight was against Nic Gravier of New Caledonia who i had fought and lost to twice a few years back. I won't lie i felt horrible, a mix of stale gastrolytes and nerves had my stomach doing all sorts of intestinal pyrotechnics!
Despite that I felt my way into the match and after scoring a wazari and yuko with a sit through and a pick up i was able to lock in a kata-gatame-jime (arm triangle) from half guard and once i applied some pressure and passed to side control was able to coax the tap out.
My semi final was against Allister Leat from New Zealand who had beaten me back in 2004 by a koka in golden score. We have both done a lot since but never crossed paths. He was the man who won the competition in 2007 that led to me not qualifying for Beijing.
he was mighty strong and an extreme leftie (which i hate) and he was able to throw me with a yuko and 2 penalties against me as well in the first half of the fight. Somewhere in the middle i decided that i was not going to lose like this and following the (VERY LOUD) advice coming from my coaches area i began to impose myself more by dominating the grips and pushing the pace of the fight. This worked well as it soon became clear that i was much fresher then my opponent. Going into the final exchnages of the fight i had been able to get 2 penalties on him but was still trailing 2 yuko's to 1. I gave everything and pushed, pulled, attacked and threw everything at him until the referee stopped the fight to penalise my opponent for stalling. I knew this gave me the lead and when i looked at the clock and saw only 6 seconds left i felt like i had gotten out of jail! i was able to survive the last exchange and win the fight.
The final was not contested as my opponent Steven Brown deemed that an arm injury suffered in his preliminary fight was too painful for him to participate in the gold medal match.
I was very disappointed by this since I was very keen for a rematch after our Nationals Final but i guess that will have to wait.
That was it, i had defended my Oceania Title from 2008!
It was a hell of a roller coaster day but thankfully i was able to listen to my coaching advice (thanks Daniel, Brent, Dennis) and had the support of my girlfriend and parents too which gave me all the strength i needed!!!
Now it's time to prepare for the NSW International Open this weekend and then off to Miami for the World Cup and US Open.
I spent a bit over a week at the Australian Institute of Sport preparing for the competition with hours of randori and fitness work.
It was a hell of a grind but came through uninjured.
The competition was small with only 8 in my division but my draw did me no favours because my first fight was against Nic Gravier of New Caledonia who i had fought and lost to twice a few years back. I won't lie i felt horrible, a mix of stale gastrolytes and nerves had my stomach doing all sorts of intestinal pyrotechnics!
Despite that I felt my way into the match and after scoring a wazari and yuko with a sit through and a pick up i was able to lock in a kata-gatame-jime (arm triangle) from half guard and once i applied some pressure and passed to side control was able to coax the tap out.
My semi final was against Allister Leat from New Zealand who had beaten me back in 2004 by a koka in golden score. We have both done a lot since but never crossed paths. He was the man who won the competition in 2007 that led to me not qualifying for Beijing.
he was mighty strong and an extreme leftie (which i hate) and he was able to throw me with a yuko and 2 penalties against me as well in the first half of the fight. Somewhere in the middle i decided that i was not going to lose like this and following the (VERY LOUD) advice coming from my coaches area i began to impose myself more by dominating the grips and pushing the pace of the fight. This worked well as it soon became clear that i was much fresher then my opponent. Going into the final exchnages of the fight i had been able to get 2 penalties on him but was still trailing 2 yuko's to 1. I gave everything and pushed, pulled, attacked and threw everything at him until the referee stopped the fight to penalise my opponent for stalling. I knew this gave me the lead and when i looked at the clock and saw only 6 seconds left i felt like i had gotten out of jail! i was able to survive the last exchange and win the fight.
The final was not contested as my opponent Steven Brown deemed that an arm injury suffered in his preliminary fight was too painful for him to participate in the gold medal match.
I was very disappointed by this since I was very keen for a rematch after our Nationals Final but i guess that will have to wait.
That was it, i had defended my Oceania Title from 2008!
It was a hell of a roller coaster day but thankfully i was able to listen to my coaching advice (thanks Daniel, Brent, Dennis) and had the support of my girlfriend and parents too which gave me all the strength i needed!!!
Now it's time to prepare for the NSW International Open this weekend and then off to Miami for the World Cup and US Open.
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