SIOUX CITY -- The Long Lines Family Rec Center will be host to the 2009 Iowa Judo Inc. State Championship tournament Saturday. The Sioux City Judo Club will host the event.
Last year, five of the club's students were named state champions, while the club won the junior team championship, Karen Mackey, judo coach, said Wednesday. Mackey is a sixth-degree black belt and the area's only certified judo coach.
Around 70 competitors will participate. Mackey said the tournament will begin at 11:30 a.m. Saturday with kata or forms and the junior technique demonstration. Master's competition for those age 30 and older will begin at noon. The children's competition for boys and girls begins at 12:30 p.m. Adult competition for those 17 and older for men and women follows at the conclusion of the children's divisions.
Admission to the tournament is free.
The individual entry fee will be $20 for one division and $5 for each additional division. Mackey said a family rate of $10 per person applies after the second member of the same family enters the tournament.
"Judo is the Number 2 sport worldwide," Mackey stressed. "It's second only to soccer. It's a great sport for people of all ages."
Anyone interested in taking classes on Tuesdays and Thursday evenings at the Long Lines Center should contact Parks and Recreation or Mackey at (712) 233-2747.