Transitioning from wrestling into Paralympic Judo for blind & visually impaired athletes
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by USA Judo
Dartanyon Crockett successfully transitioned from wrestling to Paralympic Judo, and won an Paralympic medal for the United States. Photo courtesy of USA Judo.
USA Judo, in a joint venture with the USA Wrestling, is continuously searching for blind and visually impaired wrestlers to transition into the sport of Parlaympic Judo. Like wrestling, Paralympic Judo is a full body sensory activity requiring little adaptation.
However, while wrestling is not a Paralympic event, judo is.
As an Asian grappling form, judo has much in common with Greco-Roman, freestyle and folkstyle wrestling. Many throwing techniques such as the hip toss, flying mare, headlock, and fireman’s carry are directly transferable into winning Paralympic Judo throws.
The strength, coordination, flexibility and cardiovascular endurance training preparedness for wrestling are so similar to Paralympic Judo that almost 50% of all U. S. Paralympics Judo Team members have had grappling backgrounds. Even visually impaired wrestlers that aren’t prepared to transition into Paralympic Judo will benefit tremendously from cross-training in the sport during the off season.
Providing judo activity embracing movement patterns that are foreign to wrestlers helps them to ease the emotional and intellectual intensity associated with high level training. Generally, participation in judo substantially enhances balance, body-control and awareness needed in championship wrestling.
As one of the most popular martial arts and one of the most practiced sports in the world, judo has proven to be a viable choice to those athletes who are ready, willing and able to realize their full potential.
Case History I
Dartanyon Crockett was a successful high school wrestler in Cleveland, Ohio. After high school, he started practicing Parlaympic Judo to keep fit. Using his grappling background, the 21-year old Crockett was immediately successful competing against able bodied, sighted athletes in local and regional judo competitions.
Through advanced training at the Olympic Training Center and hard work, Crockett won a bronze medal at the 2012 IPC Paralympic Games in London and a gold medal at the 2014 IBSA World Judo Championships in Colorado Springs. He is currently training to compete in the 2016 IPC Paralympic Games in Brazil.
With his wrestling background, Crockett has climbed the ladder of athletic success to represent the United States at one of the largest sporting events in the world.
Like most Paralympics sports, generous levels of financial assistance are available to athletes meeting criteria through the auspices of the U. S. Paralympics Committee. Because visual impairment is sometimes not well recognized by coaches, the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) has defined blindness into three categories for easy use.
Table 1 below summarizes the IBSA definitions for blindness. Within this context, categories B1 - B3 compete against each other in IBSA sanctioned events.
Table #1:
International Blind Sports Federation Definition of Blindness
Category/Definition
B1 - Total absence of light perception in both eyes or some perception of light but inability to recognize form of a hand at any distance.
B2 - Ability to recognize shape of a hand to visual acuity of 20/600 and/or visual field of <5-degrees.
B3 - Visual acuity >20/600 – 60/600 and/or visual field of >5 - <20-degrees.
B4 - Visual Acuity = 20/70 up to 20/200.
A board-certified physician specializing in vision is qualified to evaluate and document individuals interested in establishing their designated category.
USA Judo schedules several developmental judo camps each year. These camps are typically conducted at the United States Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Colorado Springs, CO. At camp, certified judo coaches and specialized residential staff work in tandem with athletes and their coaches to deliver a curriculum resulting in successful outcomes. USA Judo provides follow-up athlete support services to track and promote continuous athletic improvement.
Watch Dartanyon competing in the 2014 IBSA World Championships that were held in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the Olympic Training Center:
VIDEO: Wrestler and Paralympic judo star Dartanyon Crockett (90kg)
Please contact Ed Liddie at USA Judo, eddie.liddie@usajudo.us for more information!
USA Judo, in a joint venture with the USA Wrestling, is continuously searching for blind and visually impaired wrestlers to transition into the sport of Parlaympic Judo. Like wrestling, Paralympic Judo is a full body sensory activity requiring little adaptation.
However, while wrestling is not a Paralympic event, judo is.
As an Asian grappling form, judo has much in common with Greco-Roman, freestyle and folkstyle wrestling. Many throwing techniques such as the hip toss, flying mare, headlock, and fireman’s carry are directly transferable into winning Paralympic Judo throws.
The strength, coordination, flexibility and cardiovascular endurance training preparedness for wrestling are so similar to Paralympic Judo that almost 50% of all U. S. Paralympics Judo Team members have had grappling backgrounds. Even visually impaired wrestlers that aren’t prepared to transition into Paralympic Judo will benefit tremendously from cross-training in the sport during the off season.
Providing judo activity embracing movement patterns that are foreign to wrestlers helps them to ease the emotional and intellectual intensity associated with high level training. Generally, participation in judo substantially enhances balance, body-control and awareness needed in championship wrestling.
As one of the most popular martial arts and one of the most practiced sports in the world, judo has proven to be a viable choice to those athletes who are ready, willing and able to realize their full potential.
Case History I
Dartanyon Crockett was a successful high school wrestler in Cleveland, Ohio. After high school, he started practicing Parlaympic Judo to keep fit. Using his grappling background, the 21-year old Crockett was immediately successful competing against able bodied, sighted athletes in local and regional judo competitions.
Through advanced training at the Olympic Training Center and hard work, Crockett won a bronze medal at the 2012 IPC Paralympic Games in London and a gold medal at the 2014 IBSA World Judo Championships in Colorado Springs. He is currently training to compete in the 2016 IPC Paralympic Games in Brazil.
With his wrestling background, Crockett has climbed the ladder of athletic success to represent the United States at one of the largest sporting events in the world.
Like most Paralympics sports, generous levels of financial assistance are available to athletes meeting criteria through the auspices of the U. S. Paralympics Committee. Because visual impairment is sometimes not well recognized by coaches, the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) has defined blindness into three categories for easy use.
Table 1 below summarizes the IBSA definitions for blindness. Within this context, categories B1 - B3 compete against each other in IBSA sanctioned events.
Table #1:
International Blind Sports Federation Definition of Blindness
Category/Definition
B1 - Total absence of light perception in both eyes or some perception of light but inability to recognize form of a hand at any distance.
B2 - Ability to recognize shape of a hand to visual acuity of 20/600 and/or visual field of <5-degrees.
B3 - Visual acuity >20/600 – 60/600 and/or visual field of >5 - <20-degrees.
B4 - Visual Acuity = 20/70 up to 20/200.
A board-certified physician specializing in vision is qualified to evaluate and document individuals interested in establishing their designated category.
USA Judo schedules several developmental judo camps each year. These camps are typically conducted at the United States Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Colorado Springs, CO. At camp, certified judo coaches and specialized residential staff work in tandem with athletes and their coaches to deliver a curriculum resulting in successful outcomes. USA Judo provides follow-up athlete support services to track and promote continuous athletic improvement.
Watch Dartanyon competing in the 2014 IBSA World Championships that were held in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the Olympic Training Center:
VIDEO: Wrestler and Paralympic judo star Dartanyon Crockett (90kg)
Please contact Ed Liddie at USA Judo, eddie.liddie@usajudo.us for more information!
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