Georgia Judo --- Wheres the love?

I was thinking about it and I realized thatthere has to be some type of money that flows through the state governing body for judo. I live in GA so I am using them as an example.

My question to you all is: have you ever seen any money from the state governing body? If so, how would someone go to access that money for tournaments, training etc. I ask this b/c I think that it is important for someone who is one of the better players in the state receive some money for development.

any questions/comments?

adam

each state does have some type of financial account that they can use for a variety of things. the amount of money in each state is completly dependent on the total number of players signed up under that organization in that state.

example: state A has 200 usji members. that state's JI body, if im correct, gets $5 per member in their fund for a total of $1000. i also think that part of the tournament sanction forms and promotion moneies might go to each state, but im not sure on that.

now.. what your state spends their money on is completly up the state officers to figure out. they might allocate some money for development, but what the criteria is only they can tell you.

i can tell you this much, it isnt a lot of money. even here in CA, where there are a lot of judo players, there isnt much money being spent on development-- at least not as much as we'd like to see, thats for sure.

Washington has some interesting programs going that help development. One of the great things they do is have clinics hosted by prominent players (Niel Adams, Barnes, Gelber etc) for all local clubs to participate in. Some of the state money helps put these clinics on.

Another thing they do is have regional weekend practice events where clubs can go to practice with other clubs.

Activities like these help strengthen the community as a whole, rather than sending money to an individual competitor to use for events.

mario,
the amount of monies and the allocation criteria for that money changes each and every year depending on the overall budget, what events there are (worlds, olympics, pan-ams, pan-am games), what programs the USOC is putting funds into, and what level the players are (A with x many points, B with x many points, etc.. etc..).

GENERALLY, here is the way it works out.
#1 gets fully funded to Germany. also gets about $2000 (more some years, less others) for costs of other events.
#2 gets anywhere from $1000-1500
#3 MIGHT get something..
#4 and 5 generally dont get anything at all.
---this is completly dependent, as i said above, on the letter and point ranking of the players. i dont have the exact details here with me though.

pan-ams, pan-am games, worlds, olympics are fully funded events. the only exception is in case of the Pan-Ams or pan-am games.. if the division is guaranteed to qualify then there is no funding at that weight cuase we dont need to go at that weight, the same if it is impossible to qualify.

if you are a B-level player with something like 20 INTERNATIONAL points then you receive a monthly stipend of i think $250. that goes up to $500 with a few more points and can, i believe, reach as much as $2000 to $3000 monthly if you are an extremly high-level A like Jimmy Pedro is.

the USOC will also fund special programs for development (usually ages 24 and under) and sometimes fund a special training program for the #1 ranked athletes-- i think this year Jimmy and Brian split a pretty good amount of money from the USOC funds. its important to know that USA Judo has little to no say on how the USOC funds are allocated. its their money, not ours.

off the top of my head i cannot say what they will give to anybody who brings home a medal in Athens. i think in the past there was something like a $30k for gold, 20k for silver, 15k for bronze system, but i really am not too sure of those exact figures.

outside of not having exact numbers in fornt of me to provide, i hope i helped explain the system a bit to you.

mario,
no need to thank me.. that information is something i think EVERYBODY should know. its the kind of stuff that people look at and realize exactly how broke usa judo is when the #1 gets so little funding and the #4 and 5 get none at all.

jimmy can use that money any way you want it, far as i am aware. im pretty damn sure that nobody can justify $3000 a month in purely judo expences for more than a few months. =)

the USOC only says how their fund contributions can be used, not those funds raised by the JI itself. problem is that the USOC funds are a huge part of our budget..

in a top-tier sport like wrestling they dont even need their USOC funding-- its less than 6% to 10% of their annual monies. for us, that same amount of money is a much, much, much higher %.

in other words, there is almost no private sponsorship of USA Judo going on and it continues to kill us becuase there is not enough to go aorund and everybody has to fight for everything they can get.

I thought this was going to be about Georgian judo like Khabarelli style and stuff.

Georgia..
speaking of them fellers over there..
from what i read they have committed to sending their national wrestling (ranked #1 in the world) to Atlanta for the Titan Games. no word if their judo team is coming as well, or what judo teams are being asked.

GM,
i dont know if you are JA, JI or JF.. but what you should do is go to your NGB's website and find out who your state president it. you could also just ask your coach im sure he would know.

then just kindly request the last accounting data for the past year. you are over 18 and a member of the state organization so i dont think they can refuse you the information.

GoldMedal/Judok@

Have either of you two questioned those that are in charge? I believe you have access to them. If I'm not mistaken BB is affiliated with the governing body. You have the opportunity to ask him. If you need the # let me know.

To back track a little. I think whom ever is going to sponsor someone wants to see them win frequently at high level tournaments. I know that's who I'd invest my $ in. In other words the individual must have a proven track record.

Judok@/goldmedal
Fellas,
I thought that you guys said that you used this forum to say things that really needed to be said. Don't beat around the bush. You guys should simply ask BB, BT, DS or even LW. Josh Resnick gave the politically correct answer to how state Judo bodies work, and how little money they actually have. I thought for certain that you guys were aware of the following facts:

1. State money is primarily used for grass roots Judo development.(kids)

2. State money is used to promote junior elite players on the point roster who stand a chance of getting on the senior roster, and show continued persistence and committment.(strong kids)

3. If you want BB or LW to notice you, then you will have to place at either the fall classic, senior nationals, new york open, etc.

4. You guys are rather long in the tooth. You have careers, and not the time to devote to serious training. Your greatest opportunity was at GSU, and then you were concentrating on graduating versus training.(understandable)

If one of you guys places in one of the aformentioned shiai, then I'm sure you will recieve a call from either BB, BT, DS, or LW. Even then, the subsidy that you will recieve would be out of their pockets and hearts, not out of the puny budget of GA Judo Inc.

So Quit ya Belly aching!

StevenABC


StevenABC:

Welcome to the show!

Standaman

ttt

Dear Goldmedal,
Gomen Nasai. I would just like for you guys to step up to the plate and take over the mantle in GA. If you guys are a bit "long in the tooth" as competitors, that makes Me, BT, BB,LW etc. "Dinosaurs". We need for you guys to get involved in GA Judo and find out what it takes to make this thing work.

Collectively you and AG have more brain power than all of us old guys put together. Elections are coming up soon and are long over due. Besides, I don't think that those guys even use computers, much less read forums. Step up to the plate and I'll vote for you.

With regards to AG and his competitive aspirations. I will be the first one to take my hat of to him for his efforts. Rodney and I never thought that he would last a month. However, the bottom line is he will need to focus and stop juping around with his training if he is ever going to get to the national level.

Only consistency will get him noticed and sponsored.

P.S. Sorry about the old "get personal cattle prod technique", though it always elicits a response.

www.ktmaf.com "check it out"

Sincerely,
StevenABC

i wasn't trying to stir the brew in the witch's cauldron here, but, I didn't know what the money went for. I assumed that they would give money to people for training, sponsor tournaments, etc.

I am not trying to argue with ABC. I have done this with him over and over again... frankly, i don't think that it is a constructive use of my precious time.

Yes, ABC, I agree that i need to stop jumping around with my training if I ever want to make it anywhere in Judo. Unfortunately, I don't even know if I want to pursue Judo on a national level anymore at this point. I would like to see some people in the area make it there though: this was my reasoning for asking these questions. I wanted to know how it worked.

I realize that I don't have what it takes to make it on the national level... curiosity was at bay in this post. I appreciate ur concern on this post though ABC. Your comments and words are appreciated.

adam

Each USJI State Governing Body (SGB) has to have a consitution and bylaws. They should be available to any member in good standing of USJI/SGB for a given state. The Bylaws will (should) have some sort of rules governing yearly (at the least) financial reports of the corporation (most SGBs being Incs.). Normally, the treasurer will give a written and verbal report of the SGBs finances at the yearly SGB meeting.

When I was president of the SGB in Louisiana, the financial reports were available to all members in good standing, and we usually sent quarterly reports to all the clubs, for sure we sent yearly reports.

The SGBs get $5 per USJI membership they sell. SGBs also charge for sanctions, promotion fees, referee certs.(for local and regional, IF they have a cert. program, not many do).

In Louisiana, we primarily spent money on development. We developed a point system that was a continuation of the USJI elite point roster. When I left, we were attempting to implement it, but folks for some reason were very averse to keeping any records of their competitions, even though it was a way to get money!

The idea was for the director of develpment to track who the up and coming state players were (juniors and seniors), and give them some financial support for tournament travel or going to level appropriate training camps. We also would support coaches (for training camps, like JI E,D, C, etc. level).

Before I left, we sent one coach to a JI coach cert. camp at the OTC, and two player/coaches to the US Open training camp the last time it was in Denver. It wasn't a full ride, but we paid for their plane and some of the hotel bill.

I'd hope that LW and BB and Georgia Judo Inc. have regular GJI meetings and give a financial report at least once a year. That should be in the GJI Byelaws for sure.

Ben R.

not sure. i think that the aja and the association are intermingled. anytime i have asked about the money, there has been a quick, "there is not money" response. i don't care anymore.

"not sure. i think that the aja and the association are intermingled. anytime i have asked about the money, there has been a quick, "there is not money" response. i don't care anymore. "

Too bad, that's a problem that in one form or the other is endemic to many USJI state organizations from what I have seen.

Ben R.