EJU cancel European Championships over BJA/UFC partnership

from http://www.britishjudo.org.uk/news/...uropean-judo-union-of-cancelled-european-judo

"The upcoming European Judo Championships in Glasgow have been withdrawn by the European Judo Union (EJU) following a disagreement over a partnership between British Judo and Ultimate Fighting Championship to promote and support the event.

British Judo still hopes to have the decision reversed but released the following statement to explain the current position.

British Judo, working in partnership with Glasgow Life, UK Sport, Event Scotland and Judo Scotland, had successfully bid to host the championships in June 2013, but the EJU stated in communications on Friday 13th February to pull the event following the announcement of a partnership between British Judo and UFC who planned to support and help promote the Championships.

Andrew Scoular, British Judo Chief Executive, said: “It is with deep regret that we have to confirm this news. We have done everything we can to make the European Judo Championships a success, working tirelessly with our partners at UK Sport, Event Scotland, Glasgow Life and the EJU since being awarded the games nearly two years ago. We were excited to be in the final planning stages to deliver what would have been a fantastic celebration of judo for thousands of spectators and hundreds of athletes as well as another major sporting event for the United Kingdom and the city of Glasgow.

Following discussions with the EJU we had cancelled the agreement with UFC to ensure we could still host the Championships. We are extremely disappointed to have had the European Judo Championships taken away from us in this way and for this reason and so following the communication with the EJU on Friday evening we have asked to meet in the hope the decision can be reversed to allow us to still deliver the event as planned.”

British Judo are in discussion with legal advisors and continue to seek direct communication with the EJU and until further notice will not be making any more statements on this matter."

What utter douchbags.

 

What's the laymans way of saying that?

 

i am so disillusioned with judo on an organisational level. I still love the art/sport but I totaly don't get how it's run over here.

 

I'm just shocked that a judo organisation can leave me more frustrated and angry than the BJA normally does. The EJU have set a whole new standard for short-sighted asshattery.

 

The european judo guys hate the ufc and will issue a burn notice on an entire country's org just for taking their free money.

 

The irony being that Ronda Rousey is the best free advertising Judo has probably ever had. Nobody knows who Riner or Iliadis or Zantaraia is, but everyone with any MA connection at all knows who Rousey is.

 

It's MMA. They (the French especially) are scared that they'll lose the next generation of Teddys to MMA. Somehow they think that kicking the BJA in the nuts and turning down a load of outside money is going to stop that from happening.

 

In the whole history of great plans ...

 

Because the BJJ Mundials are so under supported and Jitz is in such decline because of it's relationship with MMA.

 

Is it still the whole cage fighting/rooster fighting stigma still attached to it? Or is there an underlying reason?

 

The worst plan since Abraham Lincoln said " I'm sick of hanging round the house, lets go take in a show...."

 

Professional fighting is in direct opposition to the ethics of the Kodokan, which are constructed around a 19th Century muscular Christianity amateurism.

 

The EJU aren't the Kodokan and I don't think they would tank their flagship event over an objection to players being paid. The head of the French association (which is the biggest in Europe) has said that he considers MMA to be beneath human dignity. This is really just a follow up from the IJF's no competing in BJJ memo from a few months ago.

 

The politics in European judo are just plain mental. I think using a magic 8 ball to make decisions would produce more sensible and popular outcomes.

I suggest we scrap the bja, eju and ijf and replace them with a magic 8 ball

Edit - why stop there though? I'm voting for the magic 8 ball party in the next election

 

Don't confuse the association with the clubs. No one hates the associations more than the clubs that operate under them.

For me, the rule changes aren't a huge deal and they've made Judo a much better spectator sport (I've spent all of today watching the Oberwart Open on youtube). If anything they just widen the gap between Judo and BJJ slightly, which makes it more worthwhile to train both. Want leg grab takedowns - BJJ is for you. Want air-mile worthy hip throws - Judo. Lots of slow tactical grinding groundwork? - BJJ.

 

Kimura did it so bang goes another theory.....

 

I know relatively resently my son was being taught many things now disallowed in competition judo. The instructors just told them what couldn't be used in competition