Nov 7, 2013
Cancelled – U of A Tournament Saturday November 9 2013
Dear Judo Friends – this is to inform you that, with regret, the U of A Tournament scheduled for November 9 has been cancelled. As of yesterday our tournament registrar had received only 16 entries. We understand that there were a further 17 potentially coming, for a possible total of 33 entrants. This compares to the well over 100 entrants from the previous year. Our best guess is that this may be due to timing of (i) the Quebec Open, which was held in Montreal this past weekend, and (ii) its associated training camp, which runs in Montreal from November 7-12. These two events have likely taken the available time and funds of those who otherwise may have entered this tournament.
Given the low number of entrants, we chose to cancel for two reasons:
1. Operating the tournament with this number of entries would have resulted in many divisions having, at best, two contestants in them. Most divisions with entries would have one person only. Due to the wide variety of size and experience, we would be unable to run exhibition matches instead. As a result, the tournament experience for those who would attend would be poor; and
2. As the U of A Judo program operates through the University, we do not do fundraising in the way that many other Judo clubs do. We have no casino or bingo funds to rely on. As a result, operating a tournament at a financial loss is simply not an option. By cancelling now (before Tuesday at noon) we are (hopefully) able to avoid most of the financial penalties involved.
Please note that the Annual General Meeting for Judo Alberta, scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on Saturday November 9, is still going ahead. If you are no longer attending this event, please consider forwarding your proxy for the AGM to someone who will be in attendance.
Please also note that the training camp scheduled for Sunday morning, November 10, is cancelled.
Thank you to those who wanted to come to our Tournament, and a special thank you to those volunteers who have assisted in everything to date. We look forward to seeing everyone at future Judo events, including the Provincial Championships in Fort Saskatchewan on February 1, 2014, and the Edmonton International at West Edmonton Mall on March 14, 15 and 16 2014.
I apologize for the short notice in this, and appreciate that this may cause you some disruption. Under the circumstances however, we have made what we feel is the best decision for the Judoka who would have attended. If you have any concerns, please feel free to contact me directly.
Regards,
Kelly Palmer
.