‘Throwing people is the best part’: High-level judo championship at West Edmonton Mall

More than 1,000 athletes competed in a Judo event at West Edmonton Mall over the weekend.

More than 1,000 competitors traveled from Canada and abroad on Friday for a weekend-long full-spectrum Olympic-format judo tournament.

The Edmonton International Judo Championship, hosted at the West Edmonton Mall, is the largest event of its kind in Canada. It’s organized by the Edmonton Yudanshakai Judo Society, a group of all non-profit judo clubs in the city.

Competitor ages ranged from U10 to U21 and a veterans group for those over 30 years old. At the U18 level, judokas were vying for a spot at the Pan American Games in 2027.

“It’s a high-level competition … and being able to do this in the West Edmonton Mall gives you 100,000 people a day walking by the event, seeing the sport,” said tournament director Mark Hicks on Saturday.

Hicks said judo’s appeal is in being a low-cost sport, focused on self-discipline and self-defence.

“If you do something wrong, you get immediate feedback from your action. You can’t blame a team, the defenceman, the forwards, the goalie, whatever happens, you’re responsible for,” he said. “I think it’s a really good sport for developing self-confidence.”

Annaka Deeg, an Edmonton-based competitor on Saturday, agrees.

“Throwing people is the best part. And it’s a huge confidence booster, which is also great,” she said.

Deeg, who tore her ACL only last year, was excited to get back into what she called a hands-on but rewarding sport after her recovery.

“Watching everyone fight for my club and watching all my friends fight has been the highlight so far … It is pretty intimidating seeing everyone here, but once you get used to it, it’s not that bad.”

Fights at the West Edmonton Mall’s Ice Palace will continue until 7 p.m. Saturday and end with U16 competitions from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Connor Hogg