Bad boy of British judo Ashley McKenzie in town for Rio 2016 test event
From a padded cell to the Olympic Games, Londoner found discipline in judo after being thrown during a fight over Pokemon cards
Ashley McKenzie (in white) is close to qualifying for the Rio 2016 Games (Getty Images/Richard Heathcot)
Text: Denise Mirás
Ashley McKenzie is the perfect example of how sport can turn a seemingly lost life around. The 26-year-old Londoner was out of control as a youngster growing up in the tough East End neighbourhood of Hackney, being expelled countless times from schools for acts of violence and abuse, usually against classmates. His uncontrollable temper landed him in a psychiatric unit, where he was sometimes locked in a padded cell.
Then, one day he got in a fight over Pokemon cards and his adversary threw him to the ground with a judo move. So amazed and impressed was McKenzie, that he joined the same club as his conqueror – Moberly Judo Club, in Kilburn, North West London.
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Fast forward to 2016 and McKenzie is an Olympian and Commonwealth Games champion, currently in town for the Rio 2016 Olympic test event. And he is clear about where he would be without judo.
One of the biggest names at the Aquece Rio International Judo Tournament, which will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday (8-9 March) at Carioca Arena 1 in Barra Olympic Park, McKenzie will also bring a little glamour to the event. He appeared on Celebrity Brother in his home nation and has his own brand of clothing. He is very close to qualifying for the Olympic Games in the -60kg category, and has replaced his Facebook profile photo with a picture of Christ the Redeemer in a kimono and black belt.
McKenzie will compete in -66kg category this week, as only this weight and the -81kg will be contested, while the women will do battle in the -52kg and -63kg categories. A total of 99 judokas from eight countries will be competing, with representatives from Brazil, Great Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Hungary, Lebanon and Papua New Guinea.
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McKenzie had a difficult start in life. He was born with a hole in his heart and needed surgery aged just 18 months, and then suffered from asthma, impaired hearing and epilepsy that caused fits. He was expelled from school at the age of seven for kicking another child in the head, and went on to be excluded more than 100 times from a single school.
His life started to improve after he was diagnosed with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) aged 11, but he continued getting into fights before the boy with the Pokemon cards taught him about judo. He fell in love with the sport so intensely that he stopped taking his medication (which dulled his senses) to be able to train and compete. Judo replaced his medication.
Race to qualify
There are 22 Olympic places in each category, determined by the international rankings. As of 29 February, McKenzie was ranked 20th, and with more tournaments to come before the qualification period closes on 30 May, he is training hard and focused on earning a berth in Brazil.
Two thousand tickets for the test event have been distributed and Rio 2016’s judo manager Kenji Saito said that the results system and medical services would be among the main areas to be tested.
