USA Judo Athletes Qualify for FILA Grappling World Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Dec. 12-13

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) - USA Judo is pleased to announce that five USA Judo athletes are among those that were recently named to the 2009 U.S. Grappling World Team which will compete in the FILA World Grappling Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Dec. 12-13. 

The team includes more than 50 of the best male and female grapplers throughout the nation who will be competing in both gi and no-gi divisions.  

Each of the five USA Judo athletes will be representing Team USA in the gi division.  Although this will be the first trip to the Grappling Worlds for all five players, they each bring a wealth of experience in judo to the grappling mat. 

Three athletes from the USA Judo National Training Site at North Miami will have the opportunity to compete in front of a hometown crowd.  Former Senior World Team member and Pan Am Games medalist Jeanette Rodriguez (Davie, Fla.) will compete in the 55kg division; 2009 Senior Pan Am Team member Angelica Delgado (Miami, Fla.) will compete in the 59kg division; and 2006 Senior Pan Am Team member Veronica Prado (Coral Springs, Fla.) will fight up from 44kg where she is the reigning National Champion to 50kg.  

Two-time Senior World Team member and 2005 Pan Am Champion Carrie Chandler (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE) will return to competition for the first time since the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Judo as a member of the team in the 63kg division.

Myles Porter (Colorado Springs, Colo. / NYAC / USA Judo National Training Site at the Olympic Training Center), a fifth-place finisher at the 2008 Paralympic Games and the #3 U.S. athlete in the 100kg division, will compete at 96kg. 

The U.S. team will be led by National Grappling Coach Ricardo Liborio (Coconut Creek, Fla.), a legend in Grappling and Mixed Martial Arts. Liborio will have three veteran assistant coaches on his World Team staff: Sheldon Marr, (Aurora, Colo.), Shawn Sheldon (W. Palm Beach, Fla.) and Anthony Califano (Santa Barbara, Calif.) 

A complete roster of the team is as follows: 

2009 U.S. Grappling World Team 

Men's No-Gi Grappling 

60kg
Zachary Makovsky (Philadelphia, Pa. / Philadelphia Fight Factory)
Matt Kucala (Frankfort, Ill. / Gilbert Grappling)
Brian Peterson (Valencia, Calif. / Big John McCarthy's UTA)
Matt Betzold (Phoenix, Ariz. / Gracie Barra Lions Den)

66kg
Tom LeCuyer (Plano, Ill. / Atlas XT / Torres MA)
Dennis Prokopos (Milbrae, Calif. / 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu)
Bryan Caraway (Goldendale, Wash. / Victory Athletic)
Ricky Lundell (Salt Lake City, Utah / Grappler's Edge)

74kg
Alex Pacheco (Mesa, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Ian McAlpine (Chandler, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Michael Kelly (Hebron, Ill. / Gilbert Grappling)
James Dinette (Golden, Colo. / Grappler's Edge)

84kg
Ben Askren (Tempe, Ariz. / Sunkist Kids)
Jacob Volkmann (White Bear Lake, Minn.  / MMMA)
Shane Cross (Denver, Colo. / Grappler's Edge)
Jeff Funicello (Mesa, Ariz. / American Pankration)

96kg
Ryan Gillespie (San Diego, Calif. / Takedown Elite)
Dan Griffiths (Tempe, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Largus Brock (Oklahoma City, Okla. / USA Stars)

120kg
Kelly Anundson (Columbia, S.C. / Black Knight WC)
Kenny Lester (Longwood, Fla. / Sunkist Kids)
Brandon Ruiz (West Jordan, Utah / Grappler's Edge)
Bruce Hoyer (Sioux Falls, S.D. (Next Edge Academy)

Absolute
Mario Rinaldi (Port St. Lucia, Fla. / American Top Team)
Jeff Monson (Olympia, Wash. / American Top Team)

Women's No-Gi Grappling

50kg
Felicia Oh (Valencia, Calif. / Big John McCarthy's UTA)
Lisa Ward (Lacey, Wash. / Victory Athletics)

55kg
Stephanie Murata (Minden, Nev. / Sunkist Kids)
Danielle Hobeika (Naperville, Ill. / Overtime MMA)
Shasta McMurry (Tempe, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Bahar Shahidi (Denver, Colo. / Grappler's Edge)

59kg
Tara LaRosa (Woodstown, N.J. / Philadelphia Fight Factory)

63kg
Shayna Baszler (Sioux Falls, S.D. / CSW / Next Edge)
Miesha Tate (Tacoma, Wash. / Victory Athletics)
Sara McMann (Gaffney, S.C. / Sunkist Kids)

67kg
Tori Adams (Colorado Springs, Colo. / Sunkist Kids)

Men's Gi

60kg
Brian Peterson (Valencia, Calif. / Big John McCarthy's UTA)
Jason Patino (Coconut Creek, Fla. / American Top Team)

66kg
Tom LeCuyer (Plano, Ill. / Atlas XT / Torres MA)
Rudy Fischmann (Glendale, Calif. / Wander Braga)
Din Thomas (Coconut Creek, Fla. / American Top Team)

74kg
Matthew Scott (Brockton, Mass. / American Top Team)
Michael Kelly (Hebron, Ill. / Gilbert Grappling)
Derrick Darling (Kansas City, Mo. / Welcome Mat)
Cole Miller (Coconut Creek, Fla. / American Top Team)

84kg
Scott Garcia (Mesa, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Jeff Funicello (Mesa, Ariz. / American Pankration)
Kyle Bracey (Amarillo, Texas / Roughrider Wrestling)
Joshua Henges (Kansas City, Mo. / Welcome Mat)

96kg
Andre Coleman (Kansas City, Mo. / Welcome Mat)
Largus Brock (Oklahoma City, Okla. / USA Stars)
Sam McCoy (Coconut Creek, Fla. / American Top Team)
Myles Porter (Colorado Springs, Colo. / NYAC / USA Judo National Training Site at the Olympic Training Center)

120kg
Kenny Lester (Longwood, Fla. / Sunkist Kids)
Bruce Hoyer (Sioux Falls, S.D. / Next Edge Academy)
Charles McCarthy (Coconut Creek, Fla. / American Top Team)

Absolute
Kenny Lester (Longwood, Fla. / Sunkist Kids)
Robert Redman (San Jose, Calif. / San Jose State WC) 

Women's Gi 

50 kg
Felicia Oh (Valencia, Calif. / Big John McCarthy's UTA)
Veronica Prado (Coral Springs, Fla. / USA Judo National Training Site at North Miami)

55kg
Jeanette Rodriguez (Davie, Fla. / USA Judo National Training Site at North Miami)

59kg
Angelica Delgado (Miami, Fla. / USA Judo National Training Site at North Miami)

63kg
Shayna Baszler (Sioux Falls, S.D. / CSW / Next Edge)
Carrie Chandler (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team Force)

Head Coach - Ricardo Liborio (Coconut Creek, Fla.)
Assistant Coach - Sheldon Marr (Aurora, Colo.)
Assistant Coach - Shawn Sheldon (West Palm Beach, Fla.)
Assistant Coach - Anthony Califano (Santa Barbara, Calif.)

Tags: Angelica Delgado, Carrie Chandler, Jeanette Rodriguez, Myles Porter, Veronica Prado