Festive Kagami biraki and Celebration of 40 Years of Judo Club Golovec
Kagami biraki 鏡 開 き is based on Japanese tradition. It is a ritual in JCG to reflect on the past year's milestones and to renew their dedication to judo principles and values, such as knowledge, courage, perseverance, kindness, friendship, respect and social responsibility. It is a unique traditional children's sports event for the youngest, where older judokas are organising and refereeing at the tournament under the supervision of their judo instructors, while the youngest compete.
"Judo is more than just learning of combat techniques. It is comprehensive and wonderful system of physical, intellectual and moral education. It has its own culture, system, legacy and tradition. Judo teaches judokas principles of ethics and a way of life. In JCG professionalism and education of the personnel are at the forefront and I am very pleased that with our modern approache judo knowledge is successfully transferred to younger generations." said JCG director and the only Slovenian female international Judo referee Nuša Lampe.
"JCG builds its strategic development on some comparative advantages. Its main advantages are tradition and knowledge. The development in our club, on the one hand, is based on professionalism in working with young judokas and, on the other hand, in a project and socially responsible approach. We develop our story through various domestic and European projects, such as Judo ukemi lessons in Schools, Exercise and keep fit classes for seniors in Homes for the Elderly, European Projects on topics like Volunteering & Inclusion and Combat bullying trough judo etc.", highlighted JCG president, Špela Lampe.
The official opening of the 15th Junior Judo Tournament Kagami biraki and Celebration of the 40th year of the JCG attended Ambassador of Japan to Slovenia H.E. Masaharu Yoshida, President of the Slovenian Judo Federation Darko Mušič, Vice Mayor of Ljubljana Dejan Crnek and Principal of Karel Destovnik Kajuh Elementary and Secondary School Sonja Šorli.
"Judo is one of the martial arts that comes from Japan, the essence of which is not just a fight. With judo, we learn respect and kindness to others, enthusiasm, regardless of the outcome of the fight, and the preservation of inner strength, which helps us stay calm. JCG is a club with a long history and the only Slovenian club registered as a judo club of the Japanese Kodokan. It is distinguished by professionalism, and the director of teh Club Ms Nuša Lampe is the only femaleinternational judo referee in Slovenia. I am glad that even in Slovenia, which is far from Japan, judo is thought by such excellent judo professionals." said Ambassador of Japan to Slovenia.
"In the Municipalty of Ljubljana, we are very proud of such sports organisations as JCG, as it proves that their ideas and knowledge are transferred from generation to generation. Kagami biraki is a tournament where it is specially shown how the older judokas help and educate younger co-members of judo club with their own knowledge and experience, thus contributing to the continuation of the judo story for the next 40 years. We wish the same for other organizations in Ljubljana, and I think that we have been successful so far, as the Golovec Community has shown with good cooperation with schools, as we see today and with nursery homes, firefighters and others in order to live in symbiosis in the most beautiful city in the world - Ljubljana.", said Vice Mayor of Ljubljan, Dejan Crnek.
At the opening ceremony, President of the Slovenian Judo Federation, Darko Mušič, presented the award to the director of Judo club Golovec Nuša Lampe on the 40th anniversary of the Club."JCG became a synonym for a good work in judo as a sport and in judo as a skill and way of life. The top result is not a priority for this club, but judo as a skill and lifestyle is at the forefront for them. In judo, the top results of athletes are only at the very top of our work, important. But under these results, the philosophy of judo and a number of values are taught. That's why this year's slogan of Kagami biraki "Judo is more than just a sport" is very appropriate and clearly demonstrates the importance of our work." said Darko Mušič.
Judo Club Golovec is the only Slovenian judo club registered at the Kodokan Institute in Tokyo, whose founder is Jigoro Kano, the father of judo. The development of the club is based on knowledge and tradition. In addition to implementing the basic mission of providing judo training for all generations, in the last two years, under the new president, Špela Lampe, a lot of efforts have been invested in a broader mission: to contribute to a better quality of life and sustainable progress in the local community. Knowledge is the fundamental value of the club's management. Due to the professionalism of its individuals, the club is also renowned in the Slovene and international judo environment. Director of Judo Club Golovec and formerly successful sompetitor Nuša Lampe is the only female international judo referee in Slovenia and at the same time the Vice-president of the Slovenian Judo Federation. Ms Nuša Lampe was recently rewarded for 20 years of work in sports by the Sports Association of Ljubljana. The beginnings of the Judo Club Golovec date back to 1978. Over the generations, more than 1,500 judokas of which many top competitors have been practising judo in the Club. The competitors of Judo Club Golovec are multiple state champions and holders of different international awards. The club has 150 active members and operates at eight locations in Ljubljana and its surroundings (Domžale, Hotič). In recent years, in line with market demand, the training programs have been modernized, educational and promotional activities have been added, especially for target groups that are not active in judo. There are five judo training programs: Judo nursery, beginners, judo school, judo competitors and students/adults/elderly.