Athlete of the Week: Tom Reed

GB Judoka Tom Reed is fresh off the podium from his incredible performance at the Commonwealth Games. Having won the silver medal, he is hungrier than ever to secure his place on Team GB for the Rio 2016 Olympics. We caught up with him to find out more about life as an elite Judo player…

Tom:

“I got into Judo for two reasons; my uncle was a very good player when he was younger so there was a family connection. I also have two brothers so Judo was a good environment for us to use our energy and stop fighting so much at home!”

“A typical days training is 2-3 sessions depending on the training phase. One would normally be 90 minutes of sparring (called randori) split into 5 minute rounds. Then a Judo technical session lasting about 90 minutes, also working on weaknesses and specific situations. The third would be weights in the gym or doing conditioning work on the track, those are the hardest ones! In Judo you have to be fit and strong as well as skillful.”

“The hardest thing about being a full time athlete is how much it takes over your life. It becomes almost impossible to plan anything in advance because you never know when you will next be competing, as there are tournaments almost every weekend. It’s very tough balancing the training with work, study and some small social life if possible!”

“I really enjoy being able to do something I love and striving to improve every day. All the hard work is aimed at making me a better athlete so it’s all worth it.”