Boston athletes featured in Black Belt Magazine

Feb. 15, 2011 - PRLog -- LOS ANGELS – Two athletes based in Wakefield, Mass., are featured in the April, 2011 issue of Black Belt Magazine, which is available on newsstands now.

Jimmy Pedro, the 1999 World Judo Champion and two-time Olympic bronze medalist, is featured on the cover of the edition.  Pedro’s seven-page spread highlights a series of four techniques particularly useful for practitioners of self-defense and mixed martial arts competition.

Pedro is the head coach of Team FORCE, the number one ranked judo school in the United States. Based in Wakefield, the program currently boasts numerous athletes ranked first or second in the United States, and three athletes ranked in the Top 16 in the world.

Kayla Harrison, a Team FORCE athlete who is originally from Middletown, Ohio, is also featured in a two-page spread in the magazine. The article focuses on her training and mental preparation as she prepares to defend her 2010 world judo title and fight for the United States’ first-ever Olympic gold medal in judo.

"I was very excited to see all the judo in Black Belt this month,” Harrison said. “It is the biggest magazine for martial artists around and it is nice to see Judo holding its own in there. It was also an honor to be mentioned among the greats of our sport such as Jimmy, Mr. Harris, and Ronda.

Other judo practitioners made the issue as well. The late George Harris, who died on Jan. 7, 2011, was also featured in the issue. He was a member of the 1964 Olympic Judo team, which competed in Tokyo and brought home a gold medal.

The magazine also called Ronda Rousey as “One to Watch.” Currently making her mark on the mixed martial arts circuit, Rousey is a world championship silver medalist and Olympic bronze medalist in judo. After a 3-0 start in MMA, Rousey has turned pro, and Pedro predicts she’ll rise to the top of the rankings in that sport. Prior to moving to California, Rousey trained with Team FORCE in Wakefield.

“It was truly an honor to be featured on the cover of Black Belt magazine, and I was delighted with the amount of coverage that they dedicated to judo players in their April edition,” commented Pedro. “Myself, Kayla Harrison, Ronda Rousey, and judo legend George Harris were all highlighted.”

Another judoka receiving a brief mention was Mike Swain. He was mentioned during a recap of the magazine’s issues during the 90’s. Swain was the 1987 world judo champion, an Olympic bronze medalist, and coach of the 1996 Olympic judo team.

For Harrison, the appearance next to such legendary figures inspires a sense of responsibility.

“I look forward to following in their footsteps and making as much positive noise for judo, and particularly women's judo, as possible,” Harrison said.

Currently, Team FORCE is training and competing in Europe, and will fight in this weekend’s Grand Prix Dusseldorf in Germany.

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About Team FORCE
Team FORCE judo is based in Wakefield, Mass., and is home to multiple U.S. national judo champions and several world-ranked athletes. These include Travis Stevens and Nick Delpopolo, both likely members of the 2012 Olympic Judo Team, and reigning World Judo Champion Kayla Harrison. The athletes train under the direction of 1999 World Judo Champion and two-time Olympic Bronze Medalist Jimmy Pedro. Their website is http://www.jimmypedro.com/teamforce.php.