The Oyonnax club, created in 1952, is one of the oldest in France.
The creation of the French Judo Federation dates back to 1946. In 1952, Georges Dido created the Club oyonnaxien de judo. Last weekend was an opportunity to celebrate this anniversary with dignity at the Léon-Émin sports center.
At the time, the first training sessions took place in a meadow, then in the back room of the Le Terminus bar. After several moves (old-timers’ home, old swimming pool, Léon-Émin sports hall), the club moved to the Sports Hall in 1982, where 450 m2 tatami mats are available to judokas. The club has two other dojos, in Nantua (250 m2 of tatami mats) and at Izernore (150 m2 tatami).
Georges Dido obtained the first black belt in the Ain department in 1955. He was awarded the Youth and Sports medal: bronze in 1975, silver in 1984, gold in 2004. In total, the club’s creator trained around a hundred black belts. His skill and his kindness earned him the esteem of all. Today, the Haut-Bugey judo club has around 200 members and is regaining momentum after the difficult years of confinement.
Historical values
Since then, the club has perpetuated the values of Georges Dido, encouraging and helping competitors (participation in the international course at Ceyrat, the interdepartmental course at Bellecin, etc.). The latter have excellent results, since they participate in competitions for all age groups from the local level to the French level, and even international (Austrian Cup of Zeltweg). Thus, three judokas participated in the championships of France minimal (Lola Briquet), hopes (Solène Gauthier) and seniors (Anaïs Segret).
These 70 years were organized in a good atmosphere, with a referee course, then a competition for the youngest, the chicks and the seniors. On Sunday, the Ain championship took place with the cadets and cadets of the first division, as well as the cup for the best junior departmental referee.
