Behind the glass railing, about fifty spectators gather to watch the catches, punctuated by the dull noises of the falls on the tatamis. Beyond the railing, shoes are strictly prohibited: there is no question of scratching the floor, which is still immaculate and shiny.
Gabriel, 14, has just finished a sambo demonstration. After about twenty minutes of training, the verdict is final: “The dojo is more modern, bigger and better insulated, and the tatami mats are nicer”enthuses the teenager with long blond hair.
Young judokas, Mahin and Sabin, 7 and 8 years old, will take their first steps on the new tatamis this Friday. With four years of practice and a yellow edging belt, the apprentice fighters had time to experiment with the other venues in Villejuifoises. “In the hall where we trained before, there was a large mirror along the tatami mats, it distracted me to see myself!”explains Mahin. “Here, there’s more space and it’s better lit,” adds Sabin, pointing to the long bay window.
New slots
“We have been asking for a new dojo since 2000”, rejoices Philippe Meyne, treasurer then president of the Aikido Club of Villejuif from 1999 to 2019, and now delegated adviser to the sports office of the town hall. The aikidoka estimates that the club will be able to benefit from five to six hours of additional slots thanks to this new dojo. With 169m2 of combat area, the new room is also more spacious than the three other martial arts training spaces in the city. A godsend for this sport, which is also practiced with swords and blades (in wood!). Above all, practitioners will save time, thanks to this permanently equipped dojo, avoiding having to install and uninstall the tatami mats., immediately nibbling a quarter of an hour of lessons.
Room for disabled sports?
For the chosen one, this inauguration offers a welcome rebalancing. “If you put together all the martial arts clubs in town, you probably have about as many members as football, he believes. But we have much smaller spaces!”
Coach at US Villejuif Judo for more than 30 years, Patrice Roland abounds. “After the Covid, we went from around 200 members to around 400. This new room will allow us to relieve congestion a bit!”, he smiled. For several years, he had dreamed of being able to organize disabled judo sessions, without having been able to find slots. With the new hall, discussions have resumed with the town hall, and the coach is hopeful of putting them in place.
Lucie Décosse, from the tatami mats of Villejuif to the Olympic medal
Guest of honor, Lucie Décosse, Olympic champion and triple world champion, who gave her name to the new dojo. The Valdemarnaise judoka trained for several years on rue Henri Barbusse, barely a hundred meters away. “When I was told that the dojo was going to bear my name, I was very moved. I have very strong ties with the city, and with this neighborhood”, explains the fighter, who connects the dedications. At his side, the mayor, Pierre Garzon (PCF), did not shy away from his pleasure to inaugurate this new temple of martial arts in the district of Léo Lagrange, this former under-secretary of State for sports under the Popular Front , notably at the initiative of the People’s Olympiads.
The new House of Martial Arts, which extends over just over 600 m2, with a 169 m2 dojo, represented 1.24 million euros of work financed by the city, with a grant of 100,000 euros from the region.
