For those who are seeking to learn how to defend themselves in a safe and effective way, Judo has been just added to the long list of sports courses provided by the Physical Education and Sports Center.
Judo traces its roots back to the art of “Jmijutsu”, which may be the mother of all the arts of self-defense. In the 18th century, it was modernized and offered, for the first time as an Olympic Sport at the Tokyo Olympic Games. Being an Olympic Sport, Judo differs from the others in the way that all mortal attacks are eliminated from the sport. In other words, Judo is a safe sport with special techniques that allows one to defend oneself without the need for mortal blows. Instead of using “kicking” as a means of defense, Judo teaches one to use the energy of the attacker in order to defeat him. Strange, isn’t it? Moreover, along with improving reflexes, judo teaches one how to foresee the next action of an attacker from his movements or the way he stands; in this way, one can effectively guard oneself from an attack.
A strange fact about Judo, as Selahattin Dorukoğlu, the Judo trainer at Bilkent states, is that all of the best judokas in the world have at least a university degree. Judo is not only a physical activity, but a mental activity as well. He further adds that if one works hard, in 4-5 years of effective training, one can reach a high enough level to possibly join the National team. Here is another fact: we Turks are very successful at this sport. Gold and Silver Medals in the Olympics and the Championship Competitions are among our achievements on the international platform. Do not hesitate to take a trip to the Far East within the borders of Bilkent by the way of Judo.

Pınar Yıldız (CS/II)