POLITICAL AFFILIATION in U.S. JUDO
Never let your political affiliation in US judo be an obstacle to your growth and development as an instructor, coach, athlete or recreational judoka. While having three separate organizations is widely viewed as a weakness in US judo, each organization has much to offer.
Using coach certification as an example, a judo coach could attend a USJF clinic delivered by Hayward Nishioka, a USJA clinic presented by Mark Lonsdale, or a USA Judo clinic by Pat Burris, and see three distinctly different, but equally valuable programs. The fact that all three come at coaching from a different perspective only increases the probability that a participant will learn much of value from each.
Whether it is dojo teaching, competition coaching, athlete development, kata or refereeing, we never truly become masters, but simply life-long students of this sport we have come to love. At Judo Training Development we are affiliated with all three governing bodies and cater equally to the members from each.