2011...The year ahead

2011 kicked off with a training camp at Wollongong from the 14-16 January, 2011. The venue was the International Judo Centre in Wollongong. There were a number of past and present Australian and State coaches on hand to share their knowledge. There were also numerous past and present National Champions and Olympians on the mat fighting it out.

Friday night was solely randori and the mat was chockers!!! Saturday morning consisted of a technical session for the juniors followed by one for the seniors. In the Junior session I was asked to run a class on one of my favourite techniques yoko-tomoe-nage. I must say I thought it would be too difficult for the kids, but most surpirsed me, picking it up quite well. Its amazing how much you pick up yourself when you teach...just going back to basics reminds you of where you may be going wrong yourself!

With my old State coach Dale - An inspiration to me for a long time

The Saturday afternoon consisted of 3 hours of randori. A bit more techinical Sunday morning finished off with more randori. The biggest problem (and some might say a good problem to have!) was with over 150 enthusiastic players on the mat, space was at a premium!

From a personal point of view, it was great to get some good randori in to start off the year. Although we were definately lacking in women on the mat, the lightweight men are always awesome to train with.

One thing that did strike me was with the number of quality competitors on the mat, it was great to see them mixing it up with the younger kids who at times seemed a little intimidated by it all.

Since then its been back to Club training and its been hard...the heat is a killer and the sessions are tough...we are averaging over 40 on the mat which is just awesome! Many will compete at the ACT Open in a few weeks, including myself. Its a chance to see how Im moving in a competition environment with the bigger picture being a number of International Events later this year.

2011 will be the biggest of my career...its make or break for any of us with hopes of making the 2012 London Olympics...the 2010 rankings have just come out and I snuck into 12th place...meaning that I would automatically qualify for the team....so this year is about leaving no regrets, staying injury free, continual improvement and improving of my past 12 month results. if I can do that...then maybe my dream will come true.

For those interested you can check out the rankings of who would make the 2012 Olymics as of January 2011. Go to the IJF website and follow the links to"example of Olympic Game Qualification" .....but remember, there is a lot of water udner the bridge between now and April 30, 2012 (the cutoff date) ....no one can rest of a past performance....your only as good as your next!!!

Korea World Cup and Tokyo Grand Slam 2010

Ben and Kylie doing some shopping therapy in Tokyo

To finish of the year, I competed in the World Cup Korea and the Tokyo Grand Slam. Both are World Ranking events meaning that results here can assist in Olympic Qualification. However, unlike the World Cup Samoa, this one in Korea is much more competitive. We left on the 28 November and trained for a few days at a Japanese University before flying across to Korea. ALso with me was my team mate Janelle and coach JB. I had a reasonable draw with Mongolia first up. I know from past experiences that the Mongolians are generally tough and physically strong. The fight was a close one but the Mongolian won with a yuko to my shido. We then went on to a 3 day training camp where I could at least attempt to avenge this loss. I trained with this Mongolian on two occasions and definately got the better of her. In fact, the whole camp was a positive boost. There were hundreds on the mat, all top quality and I was mixing it with them all. We travelled back to Tokyo on Wednesday and I pretty much went straight to the hospital. The flu was getting the better of me and Im happy to say that after some antibiotics, things turned around. But what an experience going through the Japanese Hospital system when you cant speak a word of Japanese! The draws then came come out for the Tokyo Grand Slam and I have a re-run of the World Championships. I drew the number 1 Brazilian first up who I lost to in the last 30 seconds at the Worlds in September. I knew her style, she trains full time in Japan and I have trained with her several times this year. Despite giving it all it wasnt to be. I went full time but lost on a yuko. So that was the end of 2010...a mixed year...some of my best international results and some fights I hope to never relive again! Coming into 2011 Im feeling re-energised after a few weeks off from judo and our Club training starts back tonight. I cant wait! 2011 is the year to really step up and be counted. I wont be satisfied with being "competitive" in international fights. I want to win them. By the end of April 2012 I need to be ranked in the top 14 in the World for Olympic Selection. At the start of 2011 Im in 12th position (when you remove duplicate countries which are not counted) What a year its going to be!!

Dealing with a poor performance...

Training Camp and Opening Ceremony

Well the World Cup in Samoa is over and to say that I am disappointed in my 5th place is an understatement. I'm pretty confident in saying that I have saved the worst performance of my career for this competition. I had a good draw and physically a good preparation.But when you step out on the mat against an unknown and very beatable USA contender...that counted for nothing. The US girl made a soft attack and I picked her up in a counter (ura nage) to take her back. It was quote spectacular...only problem is I landed first and the ippon went to her....game over. I had very little time to grasp the consequences of this mistake when I was back in the repercharge against fellow Aussie Sarah Collins. I scored with a Yuko and then used one of my favourite turnovers to secure a hold for ippon. Then it was a long drawn out wait to the finals to fight for the bronze against my no.1 US rival Ransom. It's hard to comprehend why...but this fight finished the same way as my first...I picked her up but fell to my back first...Ippon to her!

Never before has this happened to me and to do it twice in a comp is something I will never, never forget. In fact I doubt you will again find me performing that technique! It was working well in training but judo is an unforgiving sport...one mistake like this and it's over. That's the excitement of judo I suppose and it's not always the best athlete that comes out the winner.

The feeling of losing in this way is indescribable and thanks to the support of my room buddy Janelle ,I dealt with it and got on with the three day training camp after. I was hopeful of seeking some revenge against both US girls but neither participated. They were more content to sit on the side of the mat and film me! ...pretty cheeky!

The majority of the Aussies participated at the training camp where some good technical demonstrations were given by former Olympic silver medallist Nic Gill from Canada. The heat at the camp was just bearable and the pool at the Aussie team hotel got a real workout!

We arrived back Thursday but for me there is no time to rest. Janelle, Ben, coach JB and I leave for another World Cup in Korea next Sunday, followed by a Grand Prix in Tokyo. The trick now is to forget the disaster of Samoa and move on with confidence to these next two events. There is a long way to go between now and Olympic Selection and little to be gained from dwelling on this one event. As I've seen...anything can happen in Judo

2 weeks to the World Cup in Samoa!

So it's Saturday 30th October and it's exactly two weeks until I fight in Samoa. This competition is an important one as a win is worth 100 points on the world ranking list. It's difficult to say what the level of competition will be like. Last year there were some fairly empty divisions which reminded me more of an Oceania Championships with the occassional Chinese thrown in. However, I strongly suspect that will all change this year as the points gained contribute directly to Olympic Selection.

There are 7 athletes from my club participating and this hasn't been lost on my coach Warren Rosser at training! For the past month we've all been putting in 'overtime' at training with the sessions a minimum of two hours. It's been intense but definitely making a difference! It's awesome when so many make the team. It's brings a different atmosphere to training and no doubt gives the 'up and comers' something to strive for.

In fact I've noticed a change in some of our cadets lately and it's all good! They are definitely coming alond well and I suspect I've only got 6-12 months before they will outgrow me and return the favour.

So its all hard work the next few weeks...cardio, circuits, weight circuits and judo will fill the day when Im not working. In the last week we'll start to taper the randori and other training...it's always a fine balance but hopefully it leads to some good results.


Jovan and I after training
In fairness Jovans' gi looks "fresh"beause it is...
He was trying on his new IJF approved ADIDAS gi for size

Introduction

"...My legs are leaden, my throat is dry and I feel slightly sick with anxiety. As I make my way towards the arena the roar of the crowd gets louder. This is my first major tournament and to say I am nervous is an understatement. I think it is because of the uncertainty of what I will face out there..." (Mark Law, Pyjama Game)


What is interesting about this quote is that the author, Mark Law was never a serious judo competitior.  However, through his own observation of the sport and as a spectator, he is able to capture the"feeling"of an elite competitor. I know this feeling too well and it never lessons with experience....


(you can read more about the pyjama game at: http://www.thepyjamagame.com)

My Introduction

Hi there. My name is Kylie Koenig and I am the Australian Judo Representative in the women's U/63kg division. I've competed as a member of the Australian Judo team for over 15 years and can I say that this feeling never changes...it could be a local event or the World Championships, it doesn't matter. It's a distinct feeling and following it comes the adrenalin rush when the referee says "Hajime".

The aim of my blog is to share with you my experiences, and the ups and downs as I attempt to gain selection for the 2012 London Olympics. It won't be an easy road, but it will be an experience that I hope to share with the young judo player who has their sights set on representing Australia one day.So firstly, here's a bit about myself.
I will shock some of you when I say I've just celebrated my 35th birthday! I am a mother of two beautiful boys aged 7 and 4 and I work full time. I am married to a wonderful husband who himself was an accomplished athlete having represented Australia in freestyle wrestling at the Olympics. He also competed in four Commonwealth Games where he won a silver medal on each occasion! He understands the sacrifices and training required at this level and supports me in trying to fulfill my dream of representing Australia at an Olympic Games. He is my true hero!

I started Judo at 13 and its been my passion since. I represented Australia for the first time aged 16 at the Oceania Championships in 1992. From that time I remained a member of the Australian Judo team competing at numerous International events including US Open, Canadian Open, various European Championship events, Fukuoka in Japan, Pacific Rim Championships, Oceania Championships, World Cups, Grand Prix, Grand Slam and World Championships. I have been a medallist at every senior National Championship in which I have competed.

In the lead up to the Sydney Olympics I was a member of the Australian shadow team. However three months out of the first selection I suffered a knee injury at work which required surgery. It certainly affected my ability to perform and I was not successful in gaining selection. During the 2004 Olympics I was not competing after giving birth to my first child Ryan in 2003. After having my second child in June 2006, I realised then that I had unfinished business in this sport. I set about shedding the 30 kg I had put on during pregnancy. I was so determined to return to the top level that I swam 1km, 11 days after a cesarean section. I returned to the gym 6 weeks after this and by the following January (6 months after having Josh) I went to Japan by myself where I trained for 3 weeks.

At this time I made the move to the University of New South Wales Judo Club under the can I saw "awesome" coaching of Warren Rosser and John Buckley. I won the Australian Championships in 2006 (one year after having Josh) and was set to fulfill my dream of representing at the Olympics. But it wasn't to be. Three weeks after this I snapped my ACL, MCL and destroyed the meniscus in my left knee. For the fourth time, I had surgery on this knee. The first Olympic Selection event was exactly 4 months later and I attempted to compete. If you know anything about a knee reconstruction, 9 months is usually the minimum time out. So I competed, lost miserably and continued on after. At the second Olympic selection the following March, I again destroyed the cartilage in my knee whilst training the day before the competition. I was unable to compete and went home for my 5th operation on this knee.
I have continued on after this and strangely enough have had my best International results in the past 12 months. Any plans of retiring are definitely now on hold. If I am to make the London Olympics, I need to maintain a ranking within the top14 in the World. To do this I must compete at numerous international events similar to a tennis circuit which gives me ranking points. When I last looked I was around 11. (This is removing duplicate countries as only one per country can qualify this way) So as they say...anything is possible. It's going to be a full on 18 months and the support of my husband, coaches, family and friends will get me there. Im also furtunate enough to now be sponsored by JOLS ADIDAS so I have the advantage of wearing the best gis.


I look forward to sharing this journey with you. If the experiences I share in this blog motivate just one Australian Judo player to follow their dreams...then its been a success in my eyes.