Joshua Katz (born 29 December 1997) is an Australian Olympic judoka, who competes at −60kg. He had won 11 Oceania titles and 12 Australian titles as of February 2024. He also won the 2022 Commonwealth Games bronze medal, and the 2023 Pan American-Oceania Judo Championships silver medal.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Joshua Katz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nickname | Katzy[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Baulkham Hills, New South Wales, Australia[1] | 29 December 1997|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alma mater | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation | Judoka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 60 kg (132 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Website | www | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Country | Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Judo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight class | –60 kg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Club | Budokan Judo Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coached by | Nathan Katz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Olympic Games | R32 (2016, 2024) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
World Champ. | R16 (2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
OJU Champ. | ![]() ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Commonwealth Games | ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Profile at external databases | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
IJF | 12339 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
JudoInside.com | 20803 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Updated on 27 July 2024 |
Early and personal life
editKatz was born on 29 December 1997[2] in Baulkham Hills, New South Wales, Australia, his hometown is Sydney, Australia, and he is Jewish.[3][4] Katz's mother is former judoka Kerrye Katz who competed at the 1988 Summer Olympics, when judo was a demonstration event for women, and came in seventh; she also won the 1985 Oceania Judo Championship in U66k, and 11 Australian national championships.[5][6] His father Robert was a judoka on the Australian national team and a national judo coach for Australia at both the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 2016 Rio Olympics.[7][8][9] His older brother, Nathan Katz, also competed for Australia in judo at the Rio Olympics.[10] The two brothers have been training partners since they were children.[3]
His high school was William Clarke College, in Kellyville.[4] Katz studied sports and exercise science and sports management at the University of Canberra, and has attended La Trobe University, studying for a Bachelor of Exercise Science.[11][12][13] He also lived in Northmead, New South Wales, and moved to Melbourne, Australia, in 2022 to train at the newly opened national training centre.[14][15] He is 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) tall, and weighs 60 kg (132 lb).[16]
Judo career
editHis judo club is the Budokan Judo Club, in Castle Hill, Australia, and his coach is his brother Nathan Katz.[4][17] He had won 11 Oceania titles and 12 Australian titles as of February 2024.[17] He also won the 2022 Commonwealth Games bronze medal, and the 2023 Pan American-Oceania Judo Championships silver medal.[17]
Early years; National and Oceania championships
editKatz won the 2013 and 2014 Australian junior national judo championships, and the 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2022 Australian National Judo Championships.[4] He also won the 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 junior Oceania Judo Championships.[4] He won the 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 senior Oceania Judo Championships.[4][2] He also was named the 2010 New South Wales Junior Boy of the Year, and received the 2010 Hills Shire Times Young Achiever Award.[15]
2016 Rio Olympics
editKatz competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics in the men's 60 kg event at 18 years of age, months after he finished high school.[18] He was eliminated in the second round by Diyorbek Urozboev of Uzbekistan, who went on to win the bronze medal, and came in 17th in the tournament.[16][4][19][20] He was Australia’s youngest-ever male judoka to compete at an Olympic Games, and was also the youngest judoka from any nation at those Games.[11][4][17] He and his brother Nathan became the first brothers to compete in judo for Australia at the same Olympic Games.[4][17] Competing at Rio, Katz suffered torn shoulder ligaments.[21]
2017–23
editKatz won the 2017 Canberra Junior ACT Cup.[22] He won the gold medal in the 2018 Perth Oceania Open, won a silver medal in the 2018 Hong Kong Asian Open, and won a bronze medal in the 2018 Malaga Senior European Cup.[22]
In 2021, Katz did not make the Australian Olympic team for the Tokyo Olympic Games, because he was injured.[23][24] He then broke his leg in September 2022, and also had shoulder surgery in 2022.[23][25]
Competing in judo at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Men's 60 kg in Birmingham, England in August, he won a bronze medal, after not having competed for six months due to injuries.[4][26] In 2022 he also won the Australian national championship, won a bronze medal at the European Open in February in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and a silver medal at the European Open in February in Warsaw, Poland, a bronze medal at the 2022 Pan American-Oceania Judo Championships in April in Lima, Peru, and a silver medal at the 2023 Panamerican-Oceania Senior Championships in September.[4][22] In November 2022, in a competition he suffered elbow ligament and tendon damage, necessitating surgery, and ending his season.[27]
He had a second shoulder surgery in March 2023.[23][25] In September 2023, competing in the 2023 Pan American-Oceania Judo Championships in Calgary, Canada, he won a silver medal.[22][4]
2024–present; Paris Olympics
editIn January 2024, he suffered a completely ruptured ACL in his knee.[25][23][28]
At the April 2024 Pan American and Oceania Championships he returned to competition, and came in fifth.[4][25] On 8 June 2024, winning a silver medal at the 2024 Abidjan African Open in the Ivory Coast, he qualified for the 2024 Olympics.[25][24][22]
In July 2024 he competed again in the 2024 Paris Olympics at Men's 60 kg, and was defeated in the first round, 1–0.[4][22]
References
edit- ^ a b "Australian Olympic Committee: Josh Katz". Archived from the original on 21 October 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
- ^ a b "Josh Katz," Commonwealth Games.
- ^ a b Sam Kestenbaum (12 July 2016). "2 Jewish Brothers Have ‘Judo in Their Blood’ — and They’re Headed to Olympics," The Forward.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Josh Katz," olympics.com.au.
- ^ "Kerrye Katz," Judo Inside.
- ^ "Kerrye Katz," Olympedia.org.
- ^ Air Vongxayasy (5 September 2022). "The Katz family has a long lasting judo history," Judo Inside.
- ^ "Nathan Katz," commonwealthgames.com.
- ^ Shane Desiatnik (22 June 2017). "Katz brothers’ judo journey," The Australian Jewish News.
- ^ Sibthorpe, Clare (29 July 2016). "Australia's youngest judo Olympian Josh Katz among UC athletes taking on Rio". The Canberra Times.
- ^ a b "UC student and Olympian Josh Katz ready to take on the world," University of Canberra, 20 May 2019.
- ^ "Josh Katz prepares for green and gold return," La Trobe University, 15 June 2022.
- ^ Clare Sibthorpe (28 July 2016). "Australia's youngest judo Olympian Josh Katz among UC athletes taking on Rio," The Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ Jo Crowley (17 February 2023). "Josh Katz: Celebrating Progress," IJF.
- ^ a b "Josh Katz," Budokan Judo Club.
- ^ a b "Josh Katz," Olympedia.org.
- ^ a b c d e "Judo Star Josh Katz Rocks Into Olympic Contention," Hills to Hawkesbury News.
- ^ "Josh Katz Olympic Athlete Visit," Terang College, 23 November 2022.
- ^ "Joshua Katz". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
- ^ "Men −60 kg – Standings". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
- ^ Patrick O’Kane (28 May 2019). "Katz brothers inspire pupils as part of Olympics Unleashed programme," Inside the Games.
- ^ a b c d e f "Josh Katz," ijf.
- ^ a b c d "Josh finds pride through pain in Paris," Olympics.com.au.
- ^ a b "Katz out of the bag for judoka’s Olympic return," Olympics.com.
- ^ a b c d e "Experienced Australian Judo team are primed and ready for Paris 2024," Combat Aus, 9 July 2024.
- ^ "Bronze for the Katz brothers at the Commonwealth Games," J-Wire, 2 August 2022.
- ^ "International Update – Josh Katz," Budokan Judo Club.
- ^ "Joshua Katz Paris 2024 Olympic Qualification," Australian Sports Federation.
External links
edit- Official website
- Joshua Katz at the International Judo Federation
- Joshua Katz at JudoInside.com
- Joshua Katz at AllJudo.net (in French)
- Joshua Katz at Olympics.com
- Joshua Katz at Olympedia
- Josh Katz at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)
- Josh Katz at The-Sports.org
- "#165 Josh Katz – Australian Olympic Judo Fighter," Good Humans with Cooper Chapman, 25 July 2024.