Judo veteran set for his Euro test
Perth plumber limbering up for championships
Paul Patrick insists he has nothing to lose at the Veterans European Judo Championships - because he is just a“plumber from Perth”.
The Fair City martial artist heads for the Emirates Arena in Glasgow next month to test himself against the continent’s best competitors.
Patrick (34) has been hard in training for the event on home soil and is planning to spring a shock on the sport’s high-profile talent.
“I’m returning to what I know best. I have never really stopped doing judo, but it got put on the back burner,” he explained to the PA.
“This is the chance of a lifetime because it’s the first time, and possibly the last, that the Europeans will be at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena.
“The Europeans is by far the biggest thing I have ever entered. If I get a European medal, that would be a great accolade for the CV.
“France has been winning golds a lot. It’s a veterans tournament with a lot of successful guys.
“You are going to meet some seriously talented guys who are just monsters, but that excites me. I love fighting and getting into a scrap.
“They have more to lose than what I do. I’m just a plumber from Perth who has decided to enter the Europeans.
“If they were to win it, it’s no big surprise.
“But if I can turn up and rock the boat a bit, that would be brilliant.”
The event will prove to be even more special as Patrick is joined by fellow members of Tayside Judo.
He said: “There are five or six from Tayside Judo who are going through to compete. We are all training very hard and I’m really proud of them.
“We’ve got a wee Tayside army going through, who are all good lads. We can hopefully turn up and medal.”
Patrick makes the move back to judo after suffering concussion in an MMA fight last year.
“The head injury was a wake up call,” he said. “I was intending on boxing
Paul Patrick has been training well ahead of the Europeans again, having another couple of fights.
“But sometimes you just need to listen to your head. I miss the MMA a lot.
“I turned my back on it for a while because I couldn’t be in the gym and then not fight and not have something to aim for.
“I’ve been doing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu regularly and I share a school with a guy in Inchture. That has taken up a lot of my time.
“I’m going to compete as much as possible at grappling and will be putting myself in for as many events as I can.”
The Veterans European Judo Championships take place from June 14-17 at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow.