Judo champ moves on despite so-so performance
By: Amit Gossai
May 18, 2008 11:26 AM - Dainis Nguyen-Huu should have been happy. But he wasn't.
May 18, 2008 11:26 AM - Dainis Nguyen-Huu should have been happy. But he wasn't.
The 18-year-old wanted to win his way onto Team Ontario for the upcoming national judo championships. No questions asked. But, instead, he dropped two of five matches this weekend at the Hershey Centre and made the grade based on earlier strong performances.“I didn’t train as hard as I should have,” said Nguyen-Huu, 18, who placed third in the under 73-kilogram category at the final Judo Ontario qualifier for the Juvenile/International Judo Federation team, which wrapped up last night.
After losing his first match to Upper Canada’s Daniel Wannamaker, Nguyen-Huu rebounded to win his next three bouts before losing his final contest to Matthew Koniuszewski.
“I wasn’t as offensive as I wanted to be,” said the Shin Bu Kan Judo Club of Mississauga fighter. “He (Matthew) got an opening, and he threw me. It was a really good throw too ... I hit my head hard and saw stars for a couple of seconds.”More than 400 judo competitors from across the province gathered here for the Ontario Schools Judo Championships, with athletes ranging in age from six to 19 in various belt and weight categories.
Even though Nguyen-Huu lost at the qualifying competition, he still moves on to the Judo Nationals slated for July 6-7 at the Hershey Centre after scoring the most points through four qualifying tournaments.
“I still get to go to Nationals, which is a good thing,” said Nguyen-Huu, who will represent Team Ontario. “But I can’t stop training. I’m definitely going to go all out for this one.”
Nguyen-Huu’s sister, Yacinta, also qualified for nationals after winning gold in the female under 70-kilogram weight class.
“I was hoping my techniques had improved over the year and they did,” said the 17 year-old, also fighting out of Shin Bu Kan. “It’s my first nationals, so I’m hoping to do well.”
Christian Golec of Sakura Judo Club of Mississauga placed first in the men’s 10-year old middleweight class.
FONTE (photo include): Mississauga - Mississauga,ON,Canada
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