Location: Penfield, NY
Founder/Owner: Heiko Rommelmann Jr
Interview by Hannah Martin

Bushido Kai Judo, Inc. has been around in one form or another since 1978. The club is run by chief instructor Heiko Rommelmann Jr. with the help of main instructors Jeff Giunta and Jeff Bradway. The club also has numerous black belts that also help coach. Bushido Kai Judo Inc. is the 6th largest USJA club with one of their greatest achievements being USA Judo’s National Over-All Kata Champions for 18 years!

What makes your club unique?

HR: “What makes Bushido Kai Judo, Inc unique is the fact that they are a recreational club that runs out of Penfield Recreation Center. Participants range from first time judo players to world level. It is a family-oriented club with many parents and children working out together. Currently the club has over 100 members and is the 6th largest club in the USJA.”

What are some of Bushido Kai Judo, Inc’s biggest achievements?

The biggest achievement of Bushido Kai Judo, Inc is Sensei Heiko Rommelmann, Jr and Sensei Jeff Giunta’s kata record: They have been USA Judo’s National Over-All Kata Champions for 18 years. They have been on seven Pan-Am Teams (highlights include gold in 07, 08 and 18), eight World Teams and have won World Masters. They have been all over the world and taught at many camps and clinics all over the US.

Bushido Kai also has had several other successful kata teams that have won Nationals, and some have represented the US at the highest levels in kata. These teams include Kerry Forster and Kirsten Weisbeck, Kerry Forster and Jennifer Chast, Kevin Ozs and Chris Arena, Heiko Rommelmann, Jr and Mark Chast. In fact, in 2009 half of the US Kata Team that was selected and competed came from Bushido Kai.

Although Bushido Kai produces many kata champions, they are not strictly a kata club. Many of the students have very impressive shiai records including Will Setter was ranked #3 in the US in 2010, Cory Giunta -Junior national champion, Heiko Karl Rommelmann – Junior national champion, Molly Sauter – Junior national champion, Melissa Eschbach – Junior national champion. Numerous other students have won at the local, state, national, Pan-Am, and World Masters level.

Where do you see your club in the future? Future goals of the club.

HR: “In the future, we hope to have students that get to experience the same opportunities that we have had the fortune to experience through judo. We hope to produce people with good human character. People who uphold the core values of judo: courage, respect, modesty, friendship, honor, sincerity, self-control, and politeness.”

USJA Judo ranks are a measure of a student’s achievement in Judo.  They are a testimony of skill, knowledge, and sportsmanship, attained through diligent study, practice, tournament participation and devotion to Judo

Congratulations to the following April 2022 Dan promotions:

Certified Rank Examiner Program – Update

If you are interested in becoming a Certified Rank Examiner, complete the CRE Application & a mock Promotion Packet, forward to the National Office and someone from the CRE Committee will follow up with you on next steps. For additional information, logon to: USJA.net, Dashboard, Committees, CRE.

USJA Judo Rank Promotion System – DO YOU KNOW?

Club promotions are not a valid rank credential.  To ensure your students continue to be motivated, conduct timely promotions.  We have students that have been in the same rank for multiple years.

No jump promotions (skipping a grade) are permitted in the USJA Rank System.  Once a student is registered in any Judo rank, he/she can be promoted only to the next higher rank and must fulfill all of the requirements for that rank before being promoted.

July Quarterly Promotion Call – The next USJA Judo Rank & Certification call will take place in July 2022.  Promotion applications for Rokudan and above will be considered during this call. Your promotion packet must be sent to the National Office by June 1, 2022, to be considered during the July call.

If you have lost or forgotten your sign-on to USJA.net, contact the USJA National Office and they will assist you with retrieving your username and password.   

USJA Judo ranks are a measure of a student’s achievement in Judo.  They are a testimony of skill, knowledge, and sportsmanship, attained through diligent study, practice, tournament participation and devotion to Judo.

Correction from March Newsletter – We had Mr. Schiebout’s promotion listed in the incorrect club.

Congratulations to the following March 2022 Dan promotions:

Certified Rank Examiner Program – Update

If you are interested in becoming a Certified Rank Examiner, complete the CRE Application, forward to the National Office and someone from the CRE Committee will follow up with you on next stesps. All levels of CRE are now required to renew their certification every four years. Be sure that your USJA Membership, Chartered Club Membership, Background Screening, CDC Heads Up and Safe Sport are all current.  For additional information, logon to: USJA.net, Dashboard, Committees, CRE.

USJA Judo Rank Promotion System – DO YOU KNOW?

Looking for the links for Background Screens, Safe Sport and Heads Up Concussion Training? Logon to USJA.net, go to your Dashboard, look for the Committees site on left side of your screen, drop down to CRE Committee, you will find the links to all three requirements at the bottom of that page.

Need help with Black Belt Promotions?

• We have club black belts that have no one in their area to assist with their own promotions because their Sensei has moved, deceased, or stopped playing judo.
• We have new black belts that were not trained in the promotion process or just have questions and not sure who to ask.
• We have individuals that have not tested in years and no one following up with them.

Reach out to your local CRE’s or the CRE Committee to assist with these situations and others. A list of CRE’s and their location are posted on USJA.net, Committees, CRE.

July Quarterly Promotion Call – The next USJA Judo Rank & Certification call will take place in July 2022. Promotion applications for Rokudan and above will be considered during this call. Your promotion packet must be sent to the National Office by June 1, 2022, to be considered during the April call.

If you have lost or forgotten your sign-on to USJA.net, contact the USJA National Office and they will assist you with retrieving your username and password.

USJA Judo ranks are a measure of a student’s achievement in Judo. They are a testimony of skill, knowledge, and sportsmanship, attained through diligent study, practice, tournament participation and devotion to Judo. Congratulations to the following February 2022 promotions:

Recent Dan Promotions

Certified Rank Examiner Program – Update

The Certified Rank Examiner Program is up and running. There was an error in the announcement going out to all blackbelts concerning promotion points for CRE certification. USJA will maintain points for certification and annual points, but the individual sign-off points have been eliminated.

If you are interested in becoming a Certified Rank Examiner, complete the CRE Application and forward to the National Office. All levels of CRE are now required to renew their certification every four years. Be sure that your USJA Membership, Chartered Club Membership, Background Screening, CDC Heads Up and Safe Sport are all current. For additional information, logon to: USJA.net, Dashboard, Committees, CRE.

USJA Judo Rank Promotion System – DO YOU KNOW?

You can only use the on-line promotion option for juniors and kyu grades. You cannot use it for Dan ranks.

Claiming Promotion Points for Refereeing, Coaching & Certifications (You must be ACTIVE):

• Refereeing or Judging – Local & Regional Referees & Judges must referee or judge in at least three (3) Local, Regional or above tournaments per year to claim points.
• Coaching Champions – You are required to have a valid Coaching Certification to claim points for Coaching Champions.
• Certifications – You are required to be an ACTIVE member on an annual basis to claim points. Example: If you are certified as a CRE, you must test/certify at least one blackbelt per year to claim points.

Background Screens are on-line only now. You cannot submit a BGS paper form.

If you have lost or forgotten your sign-on to USJA.net, contact the USJA National Office and they will assist you with retrieving your username and password.

USJA Judo ranks are a measure of a student’s achievement in Judo. They are a testimony of skill, knowledge, and sportsmanship, attained through diligent study, practice, tournament participation and devotion to Judo. Congratulations to the following January 2022 promotions:

Recent Dan Promotions

Certified Rank Examiner Program

The Certified Rank Examiner Program is up and running. If you are interested in becoming a Certified Rank Examiner, complete the CRE Application and forward to the National Office. All levels of CRE are now required to renew their certification every four years. Be sure that your USJA Membership, Chartered Club Membership, Background Screening, CDC Heads Up and Safe Sport are all current. For additional information, visit USJA.net, Committees, CRE.

USJA Judo Rank Promotion System – DO YOU KNOW?

The last version of our manual was completed on December 22, 2020. There have been a few updates since that time. Do I need to buy a new manual every time there is an update? No! Sign-in to your USJA profile, search for “Printable Forms”, at the top of the list, you will find “12/20 Rank Promotion System, Page Updates”. You can either download to your computer or you can print the pages off and replace the old pages in your manual.

If you have lost or forgotten your sign-on to USJA.net, contact the USJA National Office and they will assist you with retrieving your username and password.

Reinstatement of Junior and Senior KYU Promotion Fees

The Board of Directors met via a Zoom Conference Call on November 5, 2021. At that time, it was determined that the fees for Junior and Senior KYU promotions would be reinstated as of December 2, 2021.

Q2 Promotion Board Meeting set for April

The next USJA Judo Rank & Certification call will take place in April 2022. Promotion applications for Rokudan and above will be considered during this call. Your promotion packet must be sent to the National Office by February 18, 2022, to be considered.

Location: Riverside, California
Founder/Owner: Brian Money

The Riverside Youth Judo Club is the largest USJA club. They have the largest and most focused Special Needs (Adaptative) judo program – one of the largest in the World. They sponsor 100% over 60% of their students who have challenges with paying for full tuition and materials such as Judo Gis. All instructors and staff are completely volunteer.

Each year they host the only Special Needs judo tournament- U.S. Special Needs Judo Championships (Except during Covid) They also host the largest All-Female judo tournament each year. The tournament is called the All-Women’s Breast and Ovarian Cancer Charity Tournament. They had over 200 female competitors at their last tournament (before COVID) and raised $15,000 for charity.

How has your dojo overcome the COVID crisis? How long were you closed? When did you reopen?

BM: The Covid issue was very challenging since we are part of a police organization. We had to completely shut down for almost a year when the pandemic first hit. We did Zoom judo to keep as many of our students engaged as possible, but it wasn’t the same. We were permitted by the State and County to reopen in June 2021 and have been doing in person classes since. We purchased two large HEPA filters for the club and we keep our doors open for better circulation. Spectators are asked to sit outside, but we have a large TV monitor with them that allows them to watch the classes in real time. We do wellness and temperature checks for each person entering the club. We had to continue classes wearing masks for the past two months because of state mandates. It’s difficult with the masks but surprisingly, no one complains as it seems everyone is happy to be back on the mat.

What do you consider to be the biggest achievement of the club?

BM: Our work with At-Risk and Adaptive students is our biggest achievement. We were featured in a National 4-part TV documentary called “Our Kids- Closing the Opportunity Gap” by Dr. Robert Putnam. We were also recognized by the National ARC group for Disabled Americans with an Inclusion Award and have a plaque on the National Wall of Respect. We are also recognized as an Outstanding Sports Team and listed in the Riverside Sports Hall of Fame.

Tell us about your Judo Program.

BM: Currently, we have about 10 Judo classes each week. Also, we should note that we mainstream about 85% of our Developmentally Disabled students into our typical classes.

These include Pre-Judo: designed for small kids to introduce them to judo using fun games and exercises. The class prepares the students to participate in a more formal beginning judo class.

Beginning Judo (twice a week) basic, formal judo class to prepare the student for intermediate/advanced judo.

Intermediate /advanced Judo (6-12 years old): typically, yellow belts and above. More focus on advanced training and competition judo.

Intermediate /advanced Judo (12-17 years old) same as above but with our older kids.

We also use about 1/3 of our mat to work one on one with our Adaptive students who require more focused training.

Adult Judo (18 and over) Twice a week and held at UC Riverside. We bring the classes to our youth club when the UC’s are shut down

Police Judo: This class teaches judo to our area’s law enforcement personnel. It’s become quite popular with 5 different police agencies participating in the weekly training.

Our club is large, but we often have up to 100 people on the mat at a time. We are asking the City and Police Department to allow us to open another room in our lot to allow for more students.

Interview by: Hannah Martin

USJA continues to believe our black belts are more than qualified to evaluate and promote the students within their club. What we have learned since eliminating the CRE program:

• We have club black belts that have no one in their area to assist with their own promotions because their Sensei has moved, deceased, or stop playing judo.
• We have new Black Belts that were not trained in the promotion process or just have questions and not sure who to ask.
• Individuals that have not tested in years and no one following up with them.

To assist with these situations and others, we have decided to reinstate the CRE program, effective February 1, 2022.

Certified Rank Examiner (CRE) Levels

• CRE 3^rd Dan or higher
• Regional (RCRE) 4^th Dan or higher
• National (NCRE) 5^th Dan or higher
• Master (MCRE) 6^th Dan or higher

Current Valid CREs

• All valid current CRE’s at all levels will automatically be reinstated.
• All previous CRE, RCRE, NCRE, & MCRE’s that have expired will be reinstated once their membership, Safe Sport, Concussion Training and Background Screenings are current and renewal fee is processed.
• All new CRE’s will need to apply. (CRE Application located in “Printable Forms”)

Eligibility

Once someone reaches the rank of Sandan or higher they are eligible to become a USJA Certified Rank Examiner (CRE), after they show their understanding and ability to follow all the requirements of the promotion procedure. This program allows certain individuals meeting the requirements to examine others for rank promotions.

• There are four levels:
  • CRE having a rank of 3rd Dan or above. Advancement after this depends on a person’s rank and their ability to meet the requirements.
  • After spending one year as a CRE having the rank of 4^th Dan or above, may apply to become a RCRE.
  • After spending one year as a RCRE having the rank of 5^th Dan or above, may apply to become a NCRE .
  • After spending two years as a NCRE having the rank of 6^th Dan or above, may apply as a MCRE.
• These are progressive steps and regardless of rank you are not permitted to skip levels unless approved by the Certified Rank Examiner Committee (CRE). Those considered for the MCRE level must be signed off and approved by 2 MCREs and approved by the USJA CRE Committee.
• At certain times, such as but not limited to changes in the promotion system, a CRE of any level must document for the CRE Committee their ability to conduct examinations using the newest promotion forms. When requested, at renewal or advancement, a CRE will either forward the most recent promotions they have examined or produce a sample promotion using the latest form and documentation.
• An additional option is to attend a CRE clinic. (This would be a Zoom call or onsite clinic, covering all the details of the promotion process.)
• To be eligible and remain valid all CREs must maintain their membership, background screening, SafeSport, and Concussion Training. All CREs must renew every 4 years.

Promotion Sign-off Requirements

• LEVEL 1 CRE: Must have a minimum rank of 3^rd Dan. As a 3^rd Dan CRE, you are allowed to recommend promotions for Nidan and below. As a 4^th – 8^th Dan CRE, you are allowed to recommend up to one rank below your current rank. These promotions will all be reviewed and signed off by the Promotion Board.
• LEVEL 2 RCRE: Must have a minimum rank of 4^th Dan. As a 4^th Dan and above RCRE you are allowed to recommend up to one rank below your current rank. These promotions will all be reviewed and signed off by the Promotion Board.
• LEVEL 3 NCRE: Must have a minimum rank of 5th Dan. As a 5^th Dan and above NCRE you are allowed to recommend promotions up to one rank below your current rank. These promotions will all be reviewed and signed off by the Promotion Board.
• LEVEL 4 MCRE: Must have a minimum rank of 6th Dan. As a MCRE, you are allowed to recommend promotions up to one rank below your current rank. These promotions will all be reviewed and signed off by the Promotion Board.

Annual Promotion Points for CRE Committee

Each black belt RFP signed off 1

(Note: You only receive points for signing off on Black Belt Promotions.)

CLICK HERE FOR THE CERTIFIED RANK EXAMINER APPLICATION FORM

Happy New Year! USJA Judo ranks are a measure of a student’s achievement in Judo. They are a testimony of skill, knowledge, and sportsmanship, attained through diligent study, practice, tournament participation and devotion to Judo. Congratulations to the following December promotions:

Recent Dan Promotions

Certified Rank Examiner Program

We plan to reinstate the Certified Rank Examiner Program in 2022. If you are interested in becoming a Member of the Certified Rank Examiner Committee, please email me at donnaturk@aol.com.

In the meantime, make sure your USJA Membership, Chartered Club Membership, Background Screening, Concussion Training and Safe Sport are all current.

Promotion Board Members

Donna Turk, Chairperson, 6^th Dan, Pensacola Judo, Florida

Ken Durand, Vice Chair, 7^th Dan, Keene YMCA Judo, New Hampshire

Raymond Conte, Secretary, 6^th Dan, St. Mary’s Institute, New York

Bruce Bender, 6^th Dan, Marion PAL Judo, Indiana

Constance Halporn, 6^th Dan, NYU Judo, New York

Heiko Rommelmann, 6^th Dan, Bushido Kai Judo, New York

Mark Hays, 6^th Dan, Unidos Judo Club, California

Randy Pierce, 7^th Dan, Konjo Dojo, Missouri

Russell Burke, 7^th Dan, Ohio Judan Judo, Ohio

James Bregman, Emeritus Member