TWO judo ikons were among those who attened the Southern Area Judo Coaching Conference held at the headquarters of the Dartford Judokawi Club.

Dartford Judokawi was selected to host the event because of its reputation and also because of the size of its matted area for the practical sessions.

The aim was to share coaching ideas and to continue updating coaches' knowledge in order they use this in their own club to raise standards, maintain interest and enthusiasm.

Sixty coaches attended from as far afield as Wales along with the chairperson of the BJA, Lesley-Ann Alexander being joined by two very special guests.

Neil Adams MBE, was Great Britain's first Olympic and World champion back in the 1970s, while Udo Quellmalz, who is originally from East Germany, won Olympic gold in 1996 and has twice been world champion.

Udo is now working with the BJA as World Performance coach. He is based at Bisham Abbey where, from September, the judo elite will train full-time for three years.

As Dartford is a centre of excellence, training those on the world performance plan, it was good to see Udo to cement the relationship.

Talks given covered refereeing, club development and lottery grants and Dartford was acknowledged as a shining example of development and advice for training those with special needs/disabilty.

If you would like more details about Dartford Judokwai Club, which caters for everyone from tots to seniors, call coach Alan Roberts on 07956 917 576.