NEW WEBSITE

Follow the link below and check out my new, updates and content packed site.

ivojudo.com

Click either of the links below to go straight to the blog

Olympic Training Blog

Judo Improves Everything Blog

Matt's Ebook

Need help improving your fitness and conditioning for Judo? Try Workouts for Judo by a 2008 Beijing Judo Olympian

http://workoutsforjudo.com/

Reflecting on 2010

http://www.ivojudo.com/2010/12/30/reflecting-on-2010/

New Website up and running

Hey guys, just letting you know I have launched my new website which has combined all of my info as well as my blogs. It is where I will be posting all posts to in the future and hopefully becomes an even more valuable resource for you guys

ivojudo.com

Ivo

My bronze match from Samoa

Samoa and Beyond

Hey guys just an update from me. On November 13, I competed in my latest event for Olympic Qualification. The Samoa Judo World Cup. I had a great day and despite losing the semi final to Sasha Mehmedovic of Canada I was able to defeat my USA opponent in the bronze final and secure 3rd place and another 40 points towards my Olympic dream. The result pushed my World Ranking up to 27. On the Olympic Selection order (taking out duplicates where more then 1 athlete from a country is in qualifying position) I am now in 19th. This is a great result as the top 22 in May 2012 are selected for London and I just have to maintain my form and I will realise my dream.

Before flying out to Samoa for this competition I was able to take up an invitation to be one of the 45 instructors at the Fight For Life Cancer Fundraiser, held in Melbourne on November 6-7. The event saw over 200 students learning from such notable instructors as Richard Norton, Mark 'The Hammer' Castagnini, Dan Cherubin and more. 

That is pretty much all for me for 2010. I will be competing in the Pan Pacific BJJ Titles next week and the Victorian State Judo Championships the week after. From then I will be taking some time off from training before launching my next training block in January 2011. 

Thanks for all of your support on my Journey to London 2012.

Ivo

Fight For Life

On November 6-7 the inaugural Fight For Life seminar was held in Melbourne. The seminar saw 45 martial arts instructors from 23 different Martial Arts conduct classes. I was honoured to be asked to conduct both Judo and MMA seminars over the weekend. Instructors included Richard Norton, Mark 'The Hammer' Castagnini, Dan Cherubin and many others. The event was a raging success with over 200 participants learning Martial Arts and raising money for Cancer Research. Over $30,000 was raised and everyone involved is excited for Fight For Life 2011.

Ivo

Al Pacino's Inspirational Speech

Quitters

Quitters never win, winners never quit

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

One of my fights from VIOC

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!