CHRIS BOWLES believes Enrico Atkinson
and Olivia Piechota will be in the hunt for medals at the European Cadet
Championships.
The Tonbridge judo pair compete in Estonia later this month, with coach Bowles
talking up their prospects.
COMEBACK KID: Jemima Yeats-Brown, in action at K2 Crawley, is enjoying a fine summer. GOLDEN BOY: Harvey Emery
"It's a little bit disappointing we
haven't got George (Cullum) and Ryan (Cottom) going as well," Bowles said. "But
I'm very hopeful for Enrico and Olivia. With the standard they are at, they've
both got a good chance of medals.
"Olivia has a good ranking, so she'll have a good seeding. She is in with a
shout and so is Enrico."
Cottom and Cullum have been selected
to compete for the Southern Area in the National Team Championships, some
consolation for missing out on Estonia.
Golden girl Jemima Yeats-Brown continues her remarkable comeback from knee
injury by moving up the European rankings.
Since her return she has taken two bronze medals and two golds in four U20
junior European Cup events.
"It's a fair comeback from the little tiger," Bowles said. "We're quite happy
with her. She's now ranked in the top four in Europe – that is a serious
seeding."
But it is the progress of the development squad, under the watchful eye of Colin
Eldridge, Dick Marcroft and Bill McLean that has really caught the eye in recent
weeks.
"We have some top development players coming through," Bowles said. "This eight
to 12 bracket is incredible. We had a session down here on Friday night and it
was just buzzing. Forty or 50 players, with a good selection of players across
the age bands. But they are only coming through because these coaches are in the
right positions. They are doing exceptionally well."
At the weekend five players from the club went to the orange belt and under
tournament at Dartford and brought home five medals.
Harvey and Toby Emery, along with Annalise Carew, struck gold, with Simone
Crosse picking up a silver and Holie Hughes a bronze medal.
