Hamilton teenager wins judo bronze at British schools' visually impaired championships
A Hamilton teenager who has been competing in judo for the past six years earned a bronze medal at the British schools’ visually impaired championship, and is sharing his story of taking part in sport with sight loss.
Daniel Fiddes claimed third place in his category at the recent nationwide competition in Sheffield, delighting his friends and coaches at Hamilton Judo Club where he has been attending classes since the age of seven.
He is also an inclusion volunteer with the busy club, and appeared on RNIB Connect radio to talk about the sport during the current Mental Health Awareness Week, which this year has the theme of movement.
Daniel has nystagmus, a sight loss condition which causes repetitive and involuntary movement of the eyes, and is one of more than 5000 children in Scotland with vision impairment.
He said of taking up judo while still at primary school: “We had a session at school where people who ran the judo club came in and held a demonstration, and I really enjoyed it so I started taking classes.
“I really enjoyed learning all the different movements and how to do them – it feels really natural to me and every session I finish, I go away happy. If I have a school subject I don’t like, I know I’ve got judo every Wednesday and that helps me get through it!”
He added: “I don’t know what full vision is like, but I feel that I can have some useful sight with my condition. I have sports goggles which I use instead of glasses in my class, because once my glasses fell off and got sat on!
“Judo is the best sport there is. My brother went to the dark side and he does taekwondo, but judo is better, obviously. It’s really fun and it’s quite active and physical.”
The 13-year-old, who is in second year at Dalziel High in Motherwell, said of his championship success: “I won the bronze medal this year, and silver the year before, so I hope to keep competing and keep getting better.”
Daniel is also a keen video gamer, attends Scouts, likes to draw and create artwork and has attended family fun days with sight loss charity RNIB Scotland.
John Kane of Hamilton Judo Club, and who is a director of Scottish Disability Sport, said: “Judo is an ideal sport for those with visual impairment because you learn the feel of the grips which help you keep control when fighting.
“Other fighters can learn from people like Daniel, because he has more spatial awareness on the mat. It’s a sport for anyone and we’d love to get more people involved.”
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