KJK Judo celebrated an outstanding performance at the recent African Cup Tournament, hosted by Judo South Africa in Brixton, where four of its athletes returned home with an impressive haul of medals.

According to the club’s instructor, Katja Bruwer, the club collected several medals across various divisions, once again demonstrating why its athletes rank among the country’s top judokas.

The event attracted more than 1 200 judokas from all nine provinces, as well as competitors from neighbouring African countries. It serves as the primary selection platform for national selectors to identify top talent for major international competitions, including the Africa Open, Youth Games, Grand Slam events and the Olympic Games.

Tia Sheppard won a gold medal in the Kumite (fighting) division in her weight category and also claimed gold in the Junior Girls SA Open Kata division. Shasa-Mercedez Erasmus also enjoyed a successful tournament, winning gold in the Kumite division. She added another gold medal in the Junior Girls category and finished with both a gold and a silver medal in the SA Open Kata competition.

Adriaan Jansen van Vuuren claimed a bronze medal in the Kumite division and secured gold in the Cadet Boys SA Open Kata division, while Nico Sheppard won gold in the Kumite division and earned a silver medal in the Cadet Boys SA Open Kata competition.

To top it all off, Jansen van Vuuren and Nico Sheppard were also part of the West Rand Cadet Boys team, which claimed the bronze medal in the Cadet team competition.