HMC Independent Schools’ Judo Tournament
An impressive number of students took part in the recent HMC Independent Schools’ Judo Tournament, a reflection of the growing popularity of judo at St Paul’s.
This was the first major competition for Shivam Chadha (Year 12, Lower Eighth), Hilton Forsyth (Year 9, Fourth form), Nick Gschwendtner (Year 11, Sixth form), Will Monk (Year 13, Upper Eighth) and Simran Uppal (Year 11, Sixth form), and all gave strong performances, with Hilton taking silver in the under 50kg category. For the Intermediates, Adam Goodbody (Year 10, Fifth form), Nick Gschwendtner and Simran Uppal showed excellent standing judo — all the more notable given their recent introduction to the sport. In the heavier weight categories, team captain Freddie Simons (Year 13, Upper Eighth) was outstanding, just missing gold in the under 60kg class.
All competitors were a credit to the squad. Will Kaufhold and Nic Leeuwis (Lower Eighth, Year 12) both performed admirably, underlining their credentials as next year’s captain and vice-captain, respectively. Will won bronze in the under 73kg class, qualifying through the repechage after losing a closely fought second round contest. The number of boys in the younger years is very encouraging and next year’s squad will have realistic ambitions of winning the team trophy at the same event.
Read more about judo at St Paul’s.