Dojo of champions, taught and trained by champions.
SWJA competitors will be present in force at the AZ State Judo Open, being held on Saturday, February 27, 2016, at the Deer Valley Middle School, 21100 N. 27th Avenue, Phoenix, starting at 10am. Many of our competitors are currently State Champions or place winners, so they will be competing on an individual basis and…
The AZ State Judo Open is Saturday, February 27, so the SWJA intra-dojo scrimmage is a great way to fine tune your all aspects of your judo. Whether you are planning on competing, refereeing, working the scoring table, or spectating and cheering for your family member or friend, use this scrimmage to have fun, and get…
SWJA is proud to award the rank of Shodan (1st degree Black Belt) to three of their students: Cailin Ross, Lewis Donnelly and David Thomas. All three received their Black Belts during a ceremony held during the Thursday night class in front of a large group of Black Belts, students, family and friends. After years of consistently dedicated…
On Sunday, 8/12, twenty women and young ladies (10 years old being the youngest ) spent 6-hours with Damon Keeve, a 6th degree black belt, 2x Judo Olympian and veteran member of the San Francisco SWAT, and SWJA Sensei’s, learning about various aspects of women’s self-defense. Majority of the training provided insight into situational awareness and…
25 Judo Sensei’s/Coaches from across Arizona attended a USA Judo Coach Certification Clinic conducted by Dave Faulkner, USA Judo AZ Coach Clinician and hosted by SWJA. Upon completing the clinic, Sensei’s/Coaches submitted applications for State, Regional or National certification permitting them to be mat side during a sanctioned tournament. Topics covered included: IOC/IJF tournament rules update, health and medical,…
Stefana Jelacic and Farrah Rasberry, who train judo at Southwest Judo Academy, win at the UFC Fight Week Ultimate Wrestling Championships held in Las Vegas. Stefana won Gold Medals in Freestyle and Folkstyle wrestling and Farrah won Gold in Freestyle and Silver in Folkstyle. Both have been state judo state champions and Stefana was also a…
SWJA hosting a poker night fundraiser to support our competitors at national tournaments. This event will be held on Saturday, 8-8-15, after the SWJA intra-school scrimmage, starting 6pm at the Night Ryders Motorcycle Club, 2528 East Madison St., Phoenix. Buy-in is $100 donation, prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places; includes food and drinks. For more information,…
The next SWJA inter-dojo scrimmage is Saturday 8-8-15, 9a-2p. Cost is $5 per competitor, and includes lunch for all attendees. Medals will be awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. This is a closed SWJA scrimmage to help students feel what it is like to be in a real tournament and gain competitive experience,…
Ellis Donnelly and Lewis Donnelly, brothers, each earned Silver in their respective divisions, along with Yusef Houssni who earned a Bronze at the USA Judo International Junior Olympic Championships held this past weekend in Irving, TX. Ellis won Silver medals in the -52Kg Intermediate 2 – Male division in both the USA Judo International Junior…
Ellis Donnelly earned Silver medal at the 2015 USA Judo Junior Olympic National Championships held this past weekend in Irving, TX. Ellis competed in the -52Kg Intermediate 2 Male division, and also earned a silver medal in the same division the following day at the USA Judo International Junior Olympic Championships. The Junior Olympic International Championships…