SHOP
Welcome to the 2020-21 season! We expect this season will be different than any other season in our 65+ years as an association due to the unprecedented times we are living in. We hope that it will be full of good news, strengthened connections between members and a seamless transition to what will be the “New Normal” for our society and our sport.
So what have we been doing over the past 6 months when there was very little judo taking place in BC? Well, as a part of the organized sport system in BC and Canada we were required to align our Return to Judo Protocols with various regulatory bodies including viaSport BC & WorkSafe BC, both of which are BC Government agencies. In order to ensure we are following the best practices, minimizing the risk to our members, and protecting the health and safety of all judoka in BC we also aligned our protocols with the International Judo Federation and Judo Canada medical commission recommendations. We have been in constant communications with the wider organized sport community in BC, our insurance broker and our member clubs. This has kept us well informed and allowed us to give regular updates to our member clubs. So even though the clubs were shut down and no “in person” provincial events have been held for the past 6 months our staff have been keep very busy. Our board of directors have also continued to meet monthly and have been extremely proactive, responsive and timely with communication and decision making. I’m very proud of how well our staff and board have worked together to ensure judo was ready to start as soon as permission was granted.
For this fall we expect the focus for our clubs and members will be on training & fitness, rather than a combination of training, travel, competitions, clinics and events as is normally the case for September to December. Judo BC will mainly be focused on assisting our clubs with restarting activities. Other areas we will be working on include:
- Preparing Phase 4 Return to Judo Protocols – “The New Normal”
- Planning for the resumption of in person Provincial level events and competitions for when the Provinces enters Phase 4
- Organizing a virtual AGM, Awards Banquet and decentralized fall camp
- Offering online activities, and possibly some small local/regional in person events, for our different program areas – Athlete Development, Coach Development, Referee Development, Kata & Grading and Gender Equity.
More details about these online and in person events will start to become available in the coming weeks.
I would like to thank all of our clubs and members who have patiently waited for permission to resume judo. We know that this was, and still is for many, a difficult time. I very much miss being on the mats at my local club in Vernon and seeing so many of you on a regular basis at our provincial level events. I would also like to thank everyone who has already submitted their registration and membership fees for this year. We depend on these membership fees, along with our government funding, grants & sponsorship to maintain our organization. Even though we have taken advantage of every emergency funding program available to us during the pandemic, we still expect this year to be financially challenging for us and our member clubs. We are up for this challenge and everything else this year brings us as “Judo teaches us to look for the best possible course of action, whatever the individual circumstances. Judo helps us to understand that worry is a waste of energy.” ~ Dr. Jigoro Kano, Founder of Judo
I look forward to seeing you on and off the mats soon!
Sincerely,
Donna Hanson
Judo BC President
