Triple-Olympian Winston Gordon has hung up his GB judogi upon retirement from competitive judo but will continue to play a role in shaping the sport as an overseas coach and ambassador.

The 36-year old retires as one of British Judo’s most experienced male judoka, having competed at Olympics in Athens, Beijing and London plus five world Championships for Great Britain. He is now looking forward to a new role as Lead Development Coach at the Olympiastützpunkt (a national centre of excellence) in Bayern, Munich – under the Bavarian Judo Association. Here he will be working alongside Richard Trautmann, the German National Junior Coach for Under 21s and Ralf Matusche – a renowned coach on the Judo circuit, to develop senior and junior top-flight national players along the high performance pathway.

His departure from British Judo will leave a lasting legacy: “I have loved every minute of my judo career. There have been many memorable moments; from winning the 2002 Commonwealth Games, fighting in an Olympic semi-final in Athens (2004) and finishing fifth, competing in Beijing and of course London 2012, which was the pinnacle of my career,” he said.

“You never forget your first OIympics – it was a fantastic baptism of fire. I will cherish all of these moments for the rest of my life. To end my competitive career after London 2012 just seemed right.”

Over an illustrious 20-year career he maintained a reputation as one of the leading -90kg forces in the country. Finishing fifth in Athens in 2004, he was propelled by a home crowd to achieve a gold for Great Britain in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and then took European bronze in 2006 in Tampere. He was crowned British Open Champion of 2009 and has claimed a number of international medals, including three World Cup bronzes.

The London 2012 Games, held in Winston’s home city, helped to propel Judo into the limelight and inspire a new generation of judoka. Indeed, Gordon has made an enormous contribution to the sport, not least in inspiring youngsters. Born and raised in the Lambeth area Gordon remembers how as 11-year old pupil at Ernest Bevin School in Tooting he was inspired to pursue the sport after his PE teacher Margaret Hicks picked him to demonstrate a judo hold. Already a keen footballer, who had the opportunity to trial for Milwall FC, he embraced Judo professionally. His meteoric rise through the ranks as a Judo cadet at elite level saw him achieve his first Dan at just 16-years old and attend numerous competitions along the way.

He owes his success to remaining with the same club, the Ernest Bevin Phoenix Club at his former school. He also trains at the famous Budokwai club – famed for its celebrity clientele’. As a Londoner born and bred, he says will find it hard to leave his beloved city and club behind, but says it is time to move forwards. “It was hard breaking the news to the boys at the club; some of them cried; but I just found that to be a testament to what I have achieved. I started and ended my competitive career at the club. If I want to achieve my ambition tobecome an Olympic Coach for GB one day, I will need to gain coaching experience and this will be good practice.

Competing for Great Britain has taken Gordon all over the world, but this next step will build upon his international experience and his work with youngsters. He says he is ready for the challenge. 

“This is a new chapter in my life. When one book closes another one opens.

“Judo’s given me an opportunity to go abroad to places I never thought I would go, to countries like Japan, where it was founded, Korea, Russia, Germany and more. The judo world has opened my eyes to other parts of the world and to different cultures.”

On one of his visits to Japan he had the chance to “randori” (spar) with Japanese Judo legends and Olympic gold medallists Judoka Hidehiko Yoshida and Kosei Inoue. “Each and every opponent I have fought has been different. Each fight  has challenged me in some way. Randori with Kosei Inoue was particularly fun,” he said.

Despite not continuing to Rio 2016, even after publicly vowing to stay on the mat until he achieved gold, he believes his legacy is to leave while he is still fresh enough to inspire a new generation of Olympians. “Since the Olympics, kids of today have become more engaged with sport, which is great for the health of the nation.

“Judo is about respect. You need to respect one another on the mat or you don’t deserve to be there. It teaches you vital life skills. Everyone in the Judo world is connected like one big family. Judo is a way of life. It never leaves you.”

Commenting on Winston’s retirement, British Judo Association (BJA) Chairman Kerrith Brown said: “Winston has been a great ambassador for Great Britain at various Olympics. Of course his retirement from competitive level sport is a sad loss for British Judo and I would have liked to have seen him retire after the Commonwealth Games but this is a great opportunity for him to coach abroad. Germany has a high coaching ethos and this is a positive transition for Winston. It will also be a chance for us to exchange ideas with Germany. I wish Winston every success in his future career.”

Words by Donna Richardson and photo by Bob Willingham IJF