Wandsworth's Winston Gordon takes part in his second Olympics this summer - but it could have been very different had he not been inspired 18 years ago by his current boss.
The 31-year-old, a member of Chelsea-based Budokwai Club, earns his living working the judo mats for Team GB, something he has done pretty much exclusively since taking up the sport as a 13-year-old.
He discovered the martial art when former PE teacher and current British Judo performance director Margaret Hicks did a demonstration of the sport at his school in 1990. And the Ernest Bevin College old boy has not looked back since.
Gordon, who narrowly missed bronze in Athens four years ago, has recovered from a broken hand to take his place in the British team bound for Beijing in August.
He admits the chance introduction to the sport is the major reason why he is going for gold in China.
"My PE teacher at the time came into assembly and showed the whole school all the moves. The throwing, the holds and the head locks - everything," he said.
advertisement
"She asked if anybody wanted to come and try, so I put my hand up and gave it go.
"She got me into a hold and gave me 10 seconds to escape. I couldn't, which, being at an all-boys school, was a little embarassing.
"Margaret is now our performance director and I am a bit of a specialist on the floor.
"I am a grappler and my favourite moves have always been the holds."
Gordon, who lost his mother Monica as a teenager in 1993, was beaten in the third place play-off contest four years ago.
He has worked hard to erase that memory in Greece, but believes the experience has been key to his return to the Olympic stage.
"I don't like to look back on Athens. I like to keep my eyes on the next challenge," he said.
"It burns that I have not got an Olympic medal, but that has just inspired me to try to put it right.
"It is going to be hard, particularly in my weight category. Everybody is up for it.
"It is the pinnacle of anybody's career. It will be down to whoever can hold their nerve on the day."
Britain's four men and three women have high hopes of a strong performance in China with Karina Bryant making her third Olympic appearance.
And Gordon, who still trains at Ernest Bevin College's state-of-the-art sports facility, has not given up hope of matching his team mate's record, before giving something back to the sport that has given him so much.
"There is still life left in me to carry on until 2012, but it depends on who else is around at the time as to whether I do or not," he said.
"I am interested in coaching if I don't make it.
"I am fully funded by Team GB and the National Lottery. By coaching, I can give something back to the sport."
WINSTON GORDON FACTFILE
Age: 31
Coach: Eric Bonti/Mark Earle
Home town: Tooting/Wandsworth
School: Ernest Bevin College
Distinguishing features:
Has a tattoo of his mother's name and date of birth in Chinese on his right forearm, and a similar inscription for grandmother Florence on his left.
Best results:
2008 - Prague World Cup, bronze
2007 - British Open, silver; Moscow Super World
Cup, bronze; Warsaw World Cup,
bronze;
Belgium Open, silver;
German Open, bronze
2006 - European Champion- ships, bronze
2005 - British Open, silver
2004 - Athens Olympics, fourth
2002 - Commonwealth Games, gold
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
Print
Email this
