麻豆社区

Testing his skills in Alaska for the first time in his judo career, 10-year-old Yukoner Daniel Tonner emerged a champion.

Tonner was one of five young Yukon judokas to travel to the Alaska State Judo Championships in Anchorage last weekend.

He went on to win gold in the U-11 mixed division, while teammate Cassi Jensen took bronze in the same group.

Wyatt Burnett, Kenny Hyatt, and KJ鈥圢eumann also took part in the tournament, held at the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center.

Neumann and Hyatt both finished second in their U-13 divisions, while Burnett returned home emptyhanded.

Burnett, Neumann and Tonner were all fighting in Alaska for the first time, and were taken by surprise by their opponents' use of the bulldog technique, a move banned in Canada.

"As a whole, we were pretty pleased with the group,鈥� said Aaron Jensen, one of the Judo Yukon coaches to make the trip. "Even after a loss, our athletes came away with gained knowledge for the next competition.

"For Daniel, it's his first year in judo, but he's a keener. He's definitely got the athletic ability,鈥� Jensen said of the young champ.

"He practises at both the Northern Lights and Shiroumakai clubs, training three times a week. He's beat Cassi before, and she's been doing judo for four years.鈥�

The total number of participants was down from recent years due to the timing of the Memorial Day weekend, which left some divisions with as few as two competitors.

Following the competition, some of the Yukoners attended an inspirational clinic led by U.S. Olympic bronze medal-winning judoka Marti Malloy.

Jensen said the relationship between the Yukon and Alaska judo clubs continues to grow, adding his longterm goal is to create a para-North tournament that includes the鈥圢.W.T.