By Emanuel Lee, Daily Journal Staff
There’s no stopping Wes Thomas.
The 2007 Aragon High graduate is having a season to remember. Thomas, an incoming freshman at the University of Washington, is the nation’s top-ranked judo athlete at 81 kilograms (179 pounds) in the 19-and-under age class.
In the three biggest events of the season, Thomas, 18, won two championships and was the runner-up in the other. In March, he won the gold medal at the U.S.A. Judo High School Nationals. A month later, he won silver at the Junior Pan Am Championships, one of the biggest tournaments of the season. In July, Thomas won gold in the U.S.A. Junior Olympics.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” he said. “I’m pretty stoked with what I’ve been able to accomplish this season.”
So in a season of memorable moments, what stands out? You might be surprised to learn that it was Thomas’ second-place showing in the Junior Pan Am Championships that gave him the most satisfaction. The Pan Am Games field the most talented and toughest competition, with athletes represented from 44 countries.
Thomas lost to a powerful Brazilian within the first minute, a result of getting slammed to the mat. However, nothing could take away the luster from him making it to the finals. After all, the 5-foot-11 standout spent the 2006 campaign trying to accumulate enough ranking points to qualify for the Pan Am Games.
“It was tough just getting there,” Thomas said. “So I was pretty happy making it to the championship match. I fought a beastly Brazilian who was shorter than I am but twice as wide. Within the first minute he lifted me on top of his head and threw me on my back. I don’t know what hit me. I’ve never had that happened to me before in competition.”
In judo, if you get slammed and land on your back you automatically lose, comparable to a knockout in boxing. Thomas was involved in a great match prior to the finals. He was fighting a Dominican in the Dominican Republic — “I don’t think anyone there likes Americans,” Thomas said — so the crowd was obviously rooting against him. The match went into overtime, where Thomas slammed his opponent to earn the victory.
“That might be the highlight of my year,” he said.
Wait, there’s more. While the High School Nationals don’t carry the same prestige of the Pan Am Games, Thomas had never won it until this year. Chalk it up to plain old bad luck. Two years ago, on the eve of the tournament, Thomas had to undergo surgery on his ear. Last year, a couple of days before the event, Thomas suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
“So that tournament was really bothering me because I had never gotten a chance to win it really,” he said. “Plus, it was double elimination and after I lost a match I had to win three straight to win the championship. I beat Tony Sangimino two times in a row, and the final match I did it with a throw, which was probably the best throw of my life.”
Even though Thomas has accomplished a lot at a young age, his buddies on the San Jose State judo team have kept him in check. After winning the U.S. Junior Olympics last year, Thomas came home to a rude awakening.
“They beat the crap out of me all the time, especially since I won nationals,” said Thomas, who trains with a San Jose State team that is comprised of a former world champion and multiple national title winners. “They’ll go out harder to make sure I don’t get a big head. I got guys choking me and throwing me all over the place. All my glory was gone in a couple of seconds.”
Thomas’ dream is to make the 2012 Olympic team. He admits he still has a long way to go to reach that level, but he’s willing to put in the work and make sacrifices. Thomas said he has to improve his style against judo athletes who fight in the European style, which emphasizes a grappling approach. Thomas fights in the classic Japanese style, which involves more of a stand-up approach and executing beautiful throws.
Thomas, who carried a 3.8 GPA at Aragon, is leaving for Seattle in a couple of weeks. For the longest time, it was a foregone conclusion that Thomas was going to attend San Jose State. He’s trained the last four years with members of the powerhouse San Jose State judo team, so the school seemed like a natural fit.
But Thomas’ dad, Winston, urged his son to apply to other universities. Once Wes got accepted and took a visit to the Washington campus — arguably the most scenic in the nation — he was hooked. For Thomas, Washington had it all: strong academics, a great setting and top-notch facilities.
“I thought it might be a good idea to get a change of scenery,” he said. “It was a very hard decision, but there’s actually some good judo in Washington. I’m doing my best to finesse judo and school. It’s not easy.”
Especially when you perform both at high levels.
Contact Emanuel Lee at
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