Bahamas goes winnless at judo championships

Bahamas goes winnless at judo championships
Bahamas Judo Federation President, D’Arcy Rahming Sr.

Team Bahamas came up winless at the 2018 World Junior Judo Championships, which wrapped up at the Atlantis Resort over the weekend.

Japan emerged as the winner of the five-day competition, defeating Brazil 5-1 in the final.

The final three local fighters competed on Saturday. Sasha Ingraham fell to Mercedesz Szigetvari from Hungary, in the +78-kilogram (kg) division, Daleon Sweeting lost to Tim Schmidt from Germany, in the men’s -90kg division, and Lyle Sherman lost in the first round to Muhammet Koc, from Turkey, in the -81kg division.

“It was everything we imagined,” said Bahamas Judo Federation (BJF) president D’Arcy Rahming.

“The people have been wonderful, the visitor as well as us, who are hosting this event. We were so blessed to host the IAAF World Relays. This is on the magnitude of that. I hope to do a yearly event like this because this sport model is something that we can continue to develop.”

Bahamas coach, D’Arcy Rahming Jr. said that competing against the best junior athletes in the world can only help local athletes with their development.

“We know we are on the right track,” he said.

“In order for these guys to win at the next level, we have to keep them solely focused on Judo. We have been training very hard, and what’s special about these guys is that they are the best that we have ever trained. Despite a medal count, his same team will now carry us into 2020 and 2024.”

About Randy Smith

Randy Smith is the producer of the widely-watched local television show “Beyond The Headlines” and the web content manager of Eyewitness News. He joined Eyewitness News as a sportscaster in 2018, a role he still performs, and has previously covered a slew of international sporting events, including the 2015 Pan American Games, the Nike EYBL Showcase, several IAAF World Relays, the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, the Commonwealth Youth Games, the Bahamas Bowl and multiple CARIFTA Swimming and Track & Field Championships. Randy has been recognized by the Bahamas Press Club with awards for “Best Sports Broadcast” as a sportscaster and “Best TV Talk Show” as a producer.