The Academy was established at the 2013 IJF Congress in Rio de Janeiro and ahead of tomorrow’s Congres here, the IJF have revealed that 148 students have been enrolled onto their Level 1 course which began earlier this month. 

Currently 127 nations are represented on the course from five continents and they are benefiting from the material being delivered in either English, French, Italian, Georgian, Spanish or Turkish, as they aim to gain the teaching skills they need to work effectively with youth and beginner athletes.

Additionally, a Level 2 course also began on the same day with 18 Turkish students looking to increase the knowledge they have gained during the Level 1 course, while also aiming to build towards taking part in the pro license course at a later stage.

Each of the three courses run by the IJF Academy have their theoretical components taught online, while the practical lessons are held during on-site sessions and are led by accomplished judo masters.

Envic Galea, director of the Academy, believes it is going from strength to strength as it begins its third year having already seen 72 students pass the Level 1 course and a further 19 receive a judo coach Level 2 certificate.

"This is only the fourth semester in our third academic year in our history, and we already issued 91 certificates," he said.

"This means that the National Federations are taking advantage of the opportunity given by the IJF and I am very pleased with the results.

"We are working with an excellent team, both on the theoretic lectures and on the practical ones.

"The Academy is a great success so far, and I truly believe that it will keep its quality in the coming semesters, with a continued increase in Alumni worldwide."

With a new website dedicated solely to the Academy having recently been made live, the IJF is hopeful that students will be able to work at their own pace, by logging into their account and downloading the various materials they require.

The courses have all been developed in cooperation with professors at the Physical Education University of Hungary, with the Level 1 and 2 courses taking place across 11 weeks.

Tomorrow's Congress comes just days ahead of the IJF World Championships, scheduled to take place from Monday (August 24) until August 30.



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