COMPETING in Glasgow ticks various boxes for Neil MacDonald these days. The 19-year-old judoka trains full-time at the British Judo Centre of Excellence in Walsall, a situation he hopes will greatly enhance his ambition of taking part in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. His demanding schedule, however, means visits back home for the man from Cambuslang are few and far between. Saturday’s Glasgow European Open at the Emirates Arena allows him to both test himself against more experienced senior fighters but also provides an opportunity for an overdue catch-up with family and friends.
“I really enjoyed competing in the European Open last year,” he said. “Coming from Glasgow, the crowd was amazing. I had all my family and friends along to watch and their support made such a big difference to me. I’m sure they’ll all be there again in big numbers next weekend. Any time I’m fighting locally they all come out to watch me. If I’m fighting abroad my dad usually comes with me to watch but when I’m back in Glasgow there’s usually loads there to support me and I really appreciate their backing.
“I’ve been looking forward to this event ever since the last one. I’ve not been back home for about three months as there have been a lot of competitions on and then when I do get a free weekend I’ve been too tired to travel home! So after competing next weekend I’m going to stay for a week and catch up with family and friends which is always nice.”
MacDonald, who fights in the -60kg category, lost in the last 16 to eventual winner Jeroen Mooren of the Netherlands last year. He returns 12 months on a more confident and rounded fighter, his confidence bolstered by the silver medal he took home from the recent Junior European championships in Malaga. Trying to bridge that gap between the junior and senior events is the challenge he is trying to overcome.
“I’m hoping I might be able to get a medal or at least reach the top five this time,” he said. “Most of the fighters are seniors so they have a lot more experience. It’s quite hard to adapt. Last year I was 18 and a guy I fought was about 30 so there was such a big difference in strength. But I’ve got another year’s training behind me and feel stronger. I hope that will help. Getting the silver medal in Malaga has given me an extra confidence boost. The previous year I was just missing out on medals but I felt I had come on enough over the past 12 months to try to get a medal. Obviously I would have loved to have won it but to reach the final and get silver is pretty good, too.
“Training in Scotland was good but moving to Walsall to the national centre has helped me a lot. I’ve been down there two years now. I’ve gone from training four times a week at home to training three times a day, five days a week. The first year it took a while to get used to the change but I feel a lot more comfortable with it now.”
With judo not part of the next Commonwealth Games, MacDonald has his eyes on making the team for the next Olympics in Japan, the home of the sport. “That’s the main long-term target. It’s gutting that there’s no chance of the Commonwealths but the Olympics allows me to look ahead four years and have something to aim at. I’m going in the right direction but I’ll need to step it up even more if I’m going to make that dream a reality.”
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