Thursday, July 30, 2009

New IJF Rules

This is a snippet from an article I wrote about the Scottish Open

The new rules brought in by the International Judo Federation did prove controversial especially the amount of time allowed to fight while on the ground, The Scots refereed the Juniors and were criticised for allowing to much time on the ground and the seniors were refereed by the English and they were criticised for not allowing enough time on the ground. Martin Clarke 8th Dan was one of the corner judges and when one of the competitors complained to him about the rules his answer was “do not blame me I did not change them so do not try and shoot the messenger” It is true the new rules have proved to have made a dramatic change to Judo and if you want to stay in the game you will have to learn how to deal with them. Yet many Judoka are leaving the sport to take up Sombo/Sambo because the rules are less restrictive and easily understood.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Why have a Gay Olympics?

Before you read my article you need to click on the link below and read some extracts from "Equity in Your Coaching" produced by the National Coaching Foundation this is part of the "Club Mark" Scheme.

http://www.sittingbourne.org/Why%20do%20Gays%20and%20Lesbians%20need%20a%20separate%20competition%20their%20sexuality%20has%20nothing%20to%20with%20their%20prowess%20as%20an%20athlete.pdf

Dear Editor
Some weeks ago I wrote an article stating how was disappointed with the Kent County Council with special reference to:
1) Their Internet TV Experiment
2) Their involvement with the Iceland Banks
3) Their promotion of Homosexuality in Schools
The latter provokes a response which I followed up with a further letter which I thought would have been printed as a “right to reply” sadly it has not been published yet. This is an extract from the letter:
JB accuses me of being Homophobic which means the fear of Homosexuals and since this Nu Labour government came to power I am, I also have a fear of Ethnic minorities. Not a fear of being attacked etc but a justified fear that as a White Heterosexual Male myself, my children and my grand children no longer have equal rights as these groups, for example jobs which have no bearing on sexually or colour of skin I.e. Police, Fire Brigade and many other government departments are being offered to Homosexuals and ethnics only! This is wrong and I do not want hear no mumbo jumbo about jobs should represent society A JOB SHOULD GO TO THE BEST PERSON Capable of doing the job. Interesting enough JB compares homosexually as a religion that is how far Nu Labour has taken GAY rights to the level of a New Religion. I never condoned the persecution of Homosexuals and thought it was right when it was legalised what some one does between the sheets is their business but I will never understand and will agree that the physical act of Homosexuals is no more then a sexual deviancy and should not be seen as normal.

Of course as soon as you complain or make a disparaging remark about Homosexuals you are either Homophobic, Closet Gay or a Religious nut I am none of them but I am an “equality nut”. Once again I have found proof that Gays and lesbians are getting preferential treatment over normal sexed people, this time it is in Sport. By having their own Gay and Lesbian mock Olympics in Holland every year I find offensive because it is discriminatory but would not want it banned as British Gay and Lesbian Athletes do not get funded from Tax payer’s money. I still do not understand how a person’s sexuality affects their performance as an athlete, I am sure there has been Gay Olympic medallist.
This discrimination is soon to be state funded if the National Coaching Foundation has their way. In a book published by them called “Equity in Your Coaching” this title is linked to UK Sports drive to get every sports club to get a “Club Mark”. Every Club wishing a Club Mark must attend a course on the subject, you will read that this organisation is actively encouraging discrimination against Heterosexuals!
I have been a World Master’s judo Champion, World Silver medallist in Sombo and Jiu Jitsu in that time I have competed against men from all over the world on no occasions have I asked what their sexual preference was, I did not want to know and more importantly did not care to me they were just another competitor who needed to be beaten.
Inequality in this country is very obvious let me give you some examples :
1) There are Gay Sports teams (Why ?) would a Hetro Teams be allowed?
2) There is a Black Policeman’s association no white one
3) Women only Gym yet Male only Golf clubs are illegal
I personally could not care about any of these I believe it is a right for like minded people to band together but at the moment that is not the case today “Surely it the right of every English to congregate with whom he likes”

Please see attachment


Martin Clarke Sittingbourne

Saturday, July 04, 2009

Political Correctness in Sport

Sport England has decide in their wisdom to insist that all Sports Club will to obtain a “ClubMark” to able to use Government/Council facilities and to be able to claim grant aid, this I believe will lead the decrease in Sports Club and sport participation. To achieve just a basic ClubMark you have fulfil 25 different criteria even for Amateur Clubs most are sports related but one has little or nothing to with Sport and “That is the EQUITY IN YOUR COACHING”. Although I totally disagree with the ClubMark and personally will not get involved it makes sense that the Club applies if only for the benefit of Grant Aid. One of the Club members had to attend one of these courses at the Clubs expense on arriving he was presented with a book 180 pages long on the subject. Like most of these courses there is role play and case scenarios here are a couple of examples:
Karen is a carer for her mother because of that has to take a bus fro training and always arrives late at team training because of this; the Coach after several warnings drops her from the squad!
PC answer: The Coach was wrong and allowances should be made for her.
Pragmatic Answer: If a Coach is running a squad he needs discipline and the foremost is good timekeeping: The team may only have a limited time slot; they may have to wait for Karen before they can start a particular sequence, and will she be able to make matches on time? It is down to Karen to be on time not for the rest of the team to wait remember this is a Team sport.
Palvinda plays in her local netball Team she has been selected to play a league game which requires her to wear a skirt her religions forbids this and she wears track Bottoms should she be dropped from the team.
PC Answer: No she should not be discriminated against on religious grounds
Pragmatic answer: Yes because the team could turn up at the event and be barred because they do not have the correct attire
Part of the course dealt with language and Terminology

Unacceptable Acceptable
Patient Person
Bind Visually impaired people
Deaf and dumb Deaf without speech
Special needs (additional )needs
Handicap Disability impairments
Disabled toilets Accessible toilets
Deaf People with hearing impediment


It no longer correct to address the Female sex as Ladies or Girls the correct procedure is to say Women or Females, use of local colloquial e.g. Love, Duck, Cock, Sweetheart, Darling all are forbidden. You must find out if your students are Homosexual, bisexual or lesbian! Why? What has their sexuality to do with their ability to sport or in my case Judo, I do not know whether I have trained with a Homosexual Judo Player I never asked and why should I. It is no longer correct to run separate sessions for different groups of people I.e., Judo session for the blind, or for Ladies sorry I mean Women everything must be inclusive, irrelevant of the safety aspects and what people want Things like men only clubs are now banned yet there is a Women’s Sports Federation, you cannot bar someone because their ethnic origin, or sexual preference, yet there are Gay Rugby Teams, Gay Olympics etc.
The main person behind all this Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Harriet Harman MP she has done her best since her Government took power in 1997 to sterilise the English Language, her drive to promote Political correctness is legendary and what has she achieved nothing but Division. The cost of this PC must be £millions and what does it achieve? The people who come with these ideas have no idea or practical knowledge of Sports Coaching. They think aggressive encouragement as bullying, if the class does not have any ethnics then it must be racist irrelevant that none live in its catchments area, no women then it must be sexist and so on. In a time when people participating in sport is dropping and Sport haemorrhaging Coaches you would have thought there would be encouragement not obstacles to attracting new coaches rather then insisting on very expensive PC training just so a PC industry can get more jobs for the boys (oops sorry PC bad word) jobs for the group.
Since Government and its Quango’s have got involved ion Sport, participation has been on the decline surely that must tell them something!

Martin Clarke Sittingbourne


Martin Clarke Sittingbourne