British Judo Association

Search Feedback

Home The Sport

Executive

Policy & Guidelines

Conduct and Complaints

Child Protection

Doping Guidelines

Equity Policy

Membership

Development Commercial Communications

Media Centre

Competitions

High Performance

Masters Judo Technical Vacancies Members Area

Click here to view the British Judo Visually Impaired Information

A brief journey through some of the Associations historical moments.

1918	G Koizumi opened a Dojo in Grosvenor Place, London SW1 and called it the Budokwai. His first chief instructor was Yukio Tani
July 1948	Koizumi's vision for the growth of judo on an international basis began to materialize in 1948. On 24 July in Committee Room A at the Imperial College Union, Prince Consort Road, London, the British Judo Association has its first Management Committee Meeting at which the Association was formed.Four days later a meeting under the chairmanship of Trevor Leggett, the most senior non-Japanese player in the world, approved the constitution of a European Judo Union (EJU) to represent judo in the continent of Europe. Three years later still, the International Judo Federation (IJF) was created as an inter-continental body with overall control of judo. There has been some controversy over the actual date of the formation of the EJU. It is suggested that the meeting in London in 1948 was a primlinary meeting and that the EJU was actually formed at a meeting in Holland October 1949
1951	European Championships – London Albert Hall
1951	First Budokwai Albert Hall Show
1951 12 July	4th Annual Meeting of the European Judo Union at which the International Judo Federation was formed.
1961	Charles Palmer OBE becomes Chairman of the British Judo Association. A post he held for the next 24 years
1965-1979	Charles Palmer OBE became IJF President
1956	First World Championships for Men Results
1964	Men’s Judo included in the Olympics for the 1st time – 1964 Tokyo
1965 April	Gunji Kiozumi – The father of British Judo passes away.
1976	1st Junior World Championships British Medals Bronze Light-middleweights Neil Adams
1980 30 Nov	1st Female World Judo Championships, New York USA. British Medals Gold –48kg Jane Bridge Bronze –52kg Bridgette McCarthy Bronze –56kg Loretta Doyle Bronze –66kg Dawn Netherwood Bronze –72kg Avril Malley
1986 March	Britain hosts the Womens European Judo Championships – Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, London British Medals Gold –48kg Karen Briggs Bronze –52kg Loretta Doyle Bronze –56KG Ann Hughes Gold –61kg Diane Bell Silver +72kg Sandra Bradshaw
1988	Women’s Judo included as a demonstration sport in the Seoul Olympics British Female Medals Gold –52kg Sharon Rendle Gold –61kg Diane Bell
1990 17 Sept	BJA Head Office moves from Islington, London to Leicester
1992	Womens Judo included as a full sport in the Barcelona Olympics British Female Medals Bronze –52kg Sharon Rendle Silver –56kg Nicola Fairbrother Bronze –66kg Kate Howey
1995	May Britain hosts the European Judo Championships – NIA, Birmingham British Medals Bronze –48kg Joyce Heron Bronze –52kg Sharon Rendle Gold -56kg Nicola Fairbrother Silver –61kg Diane Bell Bronze –66kg Rowena Sweatman Bronze –72kg Kate Howey Gold –60kg Nigel Donohue
1995 December	Charles Palmer OBE receives his 10th Dan – The First non-japanese person to receive the award.
1999 October	Britain hosts the World Judo Championships - NIA, Birmingham British Medals Bronze –63kg Karen Roberts Bronze– 70kg Kate Howey Bronze +78kg Karina Bryant Gold –81kg Graeme Randall
2001 17 Aug	Charles Palmer OBE BJA Life President passes away
2003 15 Nov	BJA moves to its new offices in Loughborough
2003 6 Dec	Britain hosts the European Mens Team Championships finals at Brentford Fountain Leisure Centre.
2004 11 Aug	Kate Howey MBE chosen to carry Great Britains flag at the Opening ceremony of the 2004 Athens Olympics. Kate is the first judo player to receive this honour.