World Judo Champion Kayla Harrison prepares for 2011 tournaments

Jan. 4, 2011 - PRLog -- BOSTON – Judo athlete and world champion Kayla Harrison will compete in a series of tournaments as she prepares to defend the world title she won in September, 2010.

Her first stop will be the World Masters Judo Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan. This important tournament is open only to those judo athletes ranked in the Top 16 in the world in their divisions and will be held Jan. 15 and 16. Harrison will enter the event ranked number four in the world.

Following that event, she’ll return to the United States to complete preparations for the Paris Grand Slam, which will be Feb. 5 and 6. She will then train for two weeks before competing in the Grand Prix tournament on Feb. 19 and 20 in Dusseldorf, Germany.

She then returns to North America, train in Canada and prepare for the Pan American Judo Championships in Mexico later this spring.

In 2010, Harrison’s focus was on getting as many tough matches as possible. While that remains an important goal, Head Coach Jimmy Pedro, a world champion and two-time Olympic Medalist, said the focus this year is on big events rather than on a lot of matches.

“We want her to focus on fighting on the big stage as much as possible,” Pedro said. “She will focus on winning these big events.”

Pedro said Harrison will have a break in April before entering the final year for 2012 Olympic qualification, which begins in May with a tournament in Brazil.

Harrison took a short break over the Christmas holiday, returning to training on Jan. 1.

“The first workout of the year was awesome,” she said. “I’m feeling really good about this year.”

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About Kayla Harrison: Kayla Harrison won the world judo championships on September 9 in Tokyo, Japan, making her only the fourth world champion from the United States. Her success in 2010 includes winning more medals at the world level than any other judo athlete on the planet. Originally from Middletown, Ohio, she trains under the direction of 1999 World Judo Champion Jimmy Pedro at the Pedro Judo Center in Wakefield, Mass. She also receives support from the New York Athletic Club.