The Tribune

At age 16, Tajaro Hudson is one of the Bahamas’ national judo champions. Starting martial arts at the age of four, Hudson has grown into an elite athlete, competing in both national and international competitions such as the Bahamas Open, the Barbados International, Pan American Championship, the Ocean State Tournament, and the US Open for multiple years. To prepare for competition, Hudson says: “Mentally, I tell myself that I have trained and have trained well, and that as long as I do my best I will do well. Physically, I jump around, keep loose, make sure I’m stretched properly and have warmed up.”

Hudson’s main inspiration is his fellow teammate and captain of the Bahamas judo team, Cynthia Rahming. Hudson says that because he saw how well Rahming did at the Youth Olympics, he “just wants to be able to accomplish some of the things (Rahming) has.” Hudson’s most memorable judo moment was when he won gold at the Barbados International, which was his first international gold medal. Hudson remembers his mom telling him that he should “finish what he started” and that “God wouldn’t put more on him than he can bear.” Hudson’s main goal is to go to the 2014 Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China.