JudoBraille Project Launches in Ljubljana

Slovenian capital welcomed the official launch of JudoBraille, a two-year Erasmus+ Sport project aiming to make judo fully accessible to blind and visually impaired athletes across Europe.
JudoBraille brings together leading organisations from across the continent: Judo Klub Golovec and Center IRIS (Slovenia), Club Deportivo Elemental Newton (Spain), Kaunas Judo Club Ryto Saulė (Lithuania), and Judo Klub Osoba s Invaliditetom Yuki (Croatia). Associated partners include the Slovenian Paralympic Committee, Croatian Judo Federation, Madrid Judo Federation, and Lithuanian Paralympic Committee, institutional support ensuring the project’s reach extends beyond individual clubs into national structures.
At the kick-off meeting, partners shared expertise, explored collaboration strategies and participated in practical sessions demonstrating inclusive judo techniques. Theory met practice.

JudoBraille is a practical intervention designed to remove specific barriers:
Accessible Belt Exam Guides: Transcribing examination materials into Braille and other accessible formats, ensuring visually impaired judoka can pursue grading progression independently and with dignity.
Coach Training & Curriculum Development: Equipping coaches with skills to adapt techniques, enhance communication methods, promote safety protocols and build confidence for VI athletes navigating a sport traditionally taught through visual demonstration.

2026-03-31

JudoBraille Consortium Meets Online: Presenting and Developing the Programme Outline and Key Considerations for Judo Coaches Working with Visually Impaired Athletes

Key points:

- The session was led by Mr. Raúl Camacho Pérez (8th DAN, Club Deportivo Elemental Newton) and Ms. Anja Pečaver (IRIS Center).

- It provided a detailed overview of the developing programme, addressing practical considerations for training visually impaired athletes, including economic, social, organizational, and environmental aspects.

JudoBraille Partners Meet in Madrid

17 September 2026

JudoBraille partners met in Madrid from 16–18 September for the project’s second Transnational Meeting, hosted by Club Deportivo Elemental Newton in cooperation with the Madrid Judo Federation.

Alongside work on the accessible Judo Belt Exam Guides and coach education curriculum, partners took the project directly to the tatami. A joint training session brought together project coaches and 12 blind and visually impaired judoka, led by Marina Fernández Ramírez, Technical Director and Head Coach of the Spanish Paralympic Judo Team.

From project development to pracsportanddev tatami.

Read more about JudoBraille on sportanddev: https://shorturl.at/GxWAl

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