Members of the YWCA Princeton Judo Club brought home medals from the Cranford Judo Invitational.
Clarisse Regnault, Emily Allessandro, Matthew Allessandro, Aaron Bakos, Boti Bakos, Thomas Amorim and Christopher Lynch represented the YWCA Princeton Judo club this year. This event is a highly competitive tournament attracting top Judo clubs and is regarded as one of the premier Judo events in the northeast.
YWCA Princeton Judo club Sensei Cory Cuomo said this was Regnault and Amorim’s first competition.
Matthew Alessandro placed first in the boys nine-10 year old division. His sister Emily placed second in the girls 13-14 year old division.
Lynch, who placed third in the boys 13-14 year division, is a seasoned champion with several medals under his belt.
Bakos took the second place medal in the boys five-six year old division, defeating his opponents by using a combination of Judo throws followed by “yoko shiho gatame,” a grappling technique designed to hold down the opponent. Bakos and his brother Aaron are two of the YWCA Princeton Judo Club’s youngest competitors.
The YWCA Princeton Judo Club also is celebrating the success of two other members. Former student and current instructor Michael Tusay was named to the United States National Judo team during 2013 and placed second at United States Senior Nationals in the Masters division at the start of May 2014.
Another student-turned instructor is Michelle Arias who began attending Judo class at the YWCA 10 years ago, is the current female United States Junior Nationals champion.
More information is online at ywcaprinceton.org.
