Team USA to Leave for World Championships on Monday

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) – The U.S. Team will leave for the Senior World Championships in Tokyo on Monday.  

The 31-member squad will be competing in one of the major qualifying events for the 2012 Olympic Games beginning on Thursday and includes 19 athletes who have won medals on the World Cup circuit this summer. 

The team will be coached by two-time Olympic medalist Jimmy Pedro (Methuen, Mass.)

“I am very excited to be coaching this year’s World Championship Team in Japan,” said Pedro who also served as the coach for the 2009 World Team.  “Since the last Worlds, many of our athletes have gained valuable international experience and won World Cup, Grand Prix, and Grand Slam medals which should give them a lot of confidence at this year’s Worlds.” 

Among the players to watch from Team USA are Kayla Harrison (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE / 78kg), Marti Malloy (San Jose, Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose State University) / 57kg) and Jeanette Rodriguez (Davie, Fla. / USA Judo National Training Site at South Florida / 52kg) – all of whom are coming off gold medal wins at the USA World Cup last weekend in Miami. 

Harrison has been undefeated since May and has won four straight World Cup titles, upsetting Olympic and Pan American medalists along the way.  

Malloy has had the best results of her career this summer as the three-time World Team member won three World Cup medals leading into the Miami event where she defeated World and Olympic Champion Isabel Fernandez (ESP) and 2008 Olympic medalist Ketleyn Quadros (BRA) en route to winning her second career World Cup title.

Rodriguez, who competed on her first Senior World Team as a 17-year-old 48kg player in 2007, has since moved up to 52kg where she earned her first World Cup win in Miami in front of a hometown crowd. 

On the men’s side, Travis Stevens (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE) is one of the top-20 players in the world in the 81kg division.  A ninth-place finisher at the Olympic Games, Stevens has since gone on to win four World Cup medals during the past year and Pan American medals in 2009 and 2010.    

With two players allowed per weight division from each nation, Team USA also includes two of the best in the world in the 73kg division.

Michael Eldred (Fruitland, Idaho / Western Idaho Judo Institute) and Nick Delpopolo (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE) will both be ranked in the top 25 at 73kg next week.  A five-time World Cup medalist, Eldred placed third alongside Delpopolo who earned his third World Cup medal in Miami.

“With some recent big wins at World level events, I believe that our athletes now know that they can contend with the best in the world,” said Pedro who also cautioned that “undoubtedly, with two athletes per country allowed in each category, this Worlds will be one of the toughest ever.”  

Although this is one of the youngest U.S. Teams to compete at a World Championships, many members of the team have travelled and competed together at the World Cups this season, including the Venezuela and El Salvador World Cups in June as well as the event in Miami.

“We’re really excited for this Worlds,” said USA Judo Director of Athlete Performance Eddie Liddie (Colorado Springs, Colo.)  “The younger group is gelling really well and we’re excited to see how they’re going to do in Tokyo.”

Competition schedule is as follows:

Thursday, August 9
Men’s 100kg and +100kg
Women’s 78kg and +78kg

Friday, August 10
Men’s 81kg and 90kg
Women’s 70kg

Saturday, August 11
Men’s 73kg
Women’s 57kg and 63kg

Sunday, August 12
Men’s 60kg and 66kg
Women’s 48kg and 52kg

Monday, August 13
Men’s Open
Women’s Open

A complete roster of athletes competing is as follows:

Ann Shiraishi (San Francisco, Calif. / East Bay Judo Institute)

Jeanette Rodriguez (Davie, Fla. / USA Judo National Training Site at South Florida)

Women’s 57kg
Marti Malloy (San Jose, Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose) State University
Hana Carmichael (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)

Women’s 63kg
Christal Ransom (Colorado Springs, Colo. / USA Judo National Training Site at the Olympic Training) Center
Janine Nakao (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)

Women’s 70kg
Katie Sell (Colorado Springs, Colo. / USA Judo National Training Site at the Olympic Training) Center
Laquinta Allen (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. / Onikusu Judo)

Women’s 78kg
Kayla Harrison (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)
Suzie Rizek (Naperville, Ill. / Fox Valley Judo)

Toni Geiger (Dumont, N.J. / Tech Judo) 

Women’s Open
Allison Clifford (San Jose, Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose) State University

Men’s 60kg
Nick Kossor (Glenville, N.Y. / USA Judo National Training Site at the Jason) Morris Judo Center
Aaron Kunihiro (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)

Men’s 73kg
Michael Eldred (Fruitland, Idaho / Western Idaho Judo Institute)
Nick Delpopolo (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)

Men’s 81kg
Travis Stevens (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)
Jose Bencosme (San Jose, Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose) State University

Men’s 90kg
Jake Larsen (Lafayette, Colo. / Team FORCE / USA Judo National Training Site at the Olympic Training Center)
Garry St. Leger (Brooklyn, N.Y. / NYAC / Legrosports Starrett)

Men’s 100kg
Kyle Vashkulat (Glenville, N.Y. / NYAC / USA Judo National Training Site at the Jason Morris Judo Center)
Shintaro Higashi (Scarsdale, N.Y. / NYAC / Kokushi Budo Institute)

Men’s +100kg
Daniel McCormick (Wakefield, Mass. / NYAC / USA Judo National Team FORCE)
Conor Driscoll (San Jose, Calif. / USA Judo National Training Site at San Jose State University)

Men’s Open
Anderson Leal (Houston, Texas)
Eric Anderson (Oklahoma City, Okla. / USA Stars)

Tags: Jeanette Rodriguez, Jimmy Pedro, Kayla Harrison, Marti Malloy, Michael Eldred, Michael Eldred, Nick Delpopolo, Travis Stevens