Contact Information
Physical Address:308 SW 3rd St.
Fruitland, ID 83619
Mailing Address:
PO Box 202
Fruitland, ID 83619
(208)452-4452
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| Michael becomes WIJI's first senior national champ! |
| Monday, 04 May 2009 02:21 |
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4/21/2009 – Sports, For Immediate Release Eldred Wins Gold & Makes USA’s World Judo Championship Team Hot off his bronze medal finish at the Pan American Championships, Michael Eldred of Fruitland and the Western Idaho Judo Institute, continued his pursuit of a judo berth at the London 2012 Olympic Games by winning the gold medal in the Male 73 Kg category at the 2009 USA Judo Senior Nationals Championships at the Town & Country Resort and Convention Center in San Diego, California, on Saturday, April 18, 2009. This win also earned Eldred the Male 73 Kg slot on 2009 World Judo Championship Team. As the top seed, Michael drew a first-round bye and then met Alfred Raymond (Rhode Island) and threw Raymond with an Ouchigari (major inside reap) for an Ippon (instant) win. In the next round, Eldred threw Illinois’ Travis Yamanaka with a Kouchigari (minor inside reap) for another Ippon. In the next round, California’s David Torres became Eldred’s 3rd victim for the day via a counter attack for an Ippon to put Eldred in the final against Massachusetts’s Nicholas Delpopolo. Despite the fast-paced and explosive action, neither judoist was able to score until 4:48 when Delpopolo used a Kataguruma (fireman’s carry) to score a yuko (1/4 point). With just 12 seconds remaining, it seemed that Delpopolo had the win sewn up and would force a best of 3 playoff between himself and Eldred to determine which one of them would earn the 73 Kg slot on this year’s World Championship Team. With 3 seconds remaining, Delpopolo was penalized for a false attack, still leaving Eldred with no score. Then, with just 2 seconds between himself and the gold medal, Delpopolo attempted an Uchimata (inner thigh throw) attack. Eldred then took advantage of the attack and then executed a Kosotogake (outside leg block) counter-attack, scoring a Wazaari (1/2 point) just as the buzzer sounded. After a discussion by the referees to confirm that the technique did start before time expired and that the score is valid, the match was awarded to Eldred. This earned Eldred his first Senior National Championship title and also the right to represent the USA at the 2009 World Judo Championships, which will be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, later this August. Adding icing to the cake, due to Michael’s decisive wins, Eldred was named the Outstanding Male Athlete for the event. |
| Last Updated on Monday, 04 May 2009 02:27 |