Johnson wins five medals, four gold, in judo internationally

After nearly two years off the mat, 2019 President Cup’s winner and 2018 US Open Judo champ Xavion Johnson returned to the United States (US) for a summer of competition that has already led him to five medals in the span of three weeks.

The 15-year-old Bahamian judoka walked away from the South Carolina State Championships with an impressive four gold medals, and also represented The Bahamas at the prestigious USA Judo Junior Olympics, walking away with a bronze. He now has his eyes set on placing in the 2021 US Judo Open and the ATJA (American Traditional Jujutsu Association) and AJJF (American Judo & Jujitsu Federation) National Championships among other tournaments.

The US Judo Open is scheduled for July 22-25, in Orlando, Florida; and the ATJA &AJJF Judo National Championships is set for July 31 in Atlanta, Georgia.

“I feel pretty good, just a li’l bit nervous but I’m looking forward to it. I’m excited. I just have to continue to work on my technique and my conditioning. I just want to thank everyone who has supported me. Without the support, I wouldn’t be here. I’m grateful for the support,” said Johnson.

The Bahamian youngster trains up to three times per day for two hours a time, seven days per week. Mother, Ordain Moss, said the decision to send Xavion off to Atlanta to train under the watchful eyes of Sensei Joshua White at Black ICE Fitness in Atlanta was a tough decision, but one that was necessary for him to get more exposure and more experience.

“He loves to compete and this was the best route for him to get as much matches and experience as possible,” said Moss. “He’s been doing this since eight and competing in the US Open since nine. He needs the experience to take him to the next level. He needs to be right in those larger arenas, so he could get a feel for it and what it’s like to compete in front of a large crowd. We’re going to make sure he gets as much fights as possible. Other competitors in the US get in around 30-40 fights per year. That’s the level where Xavion should be. We’re working on getting him there.”

Johnson came up through the Eastwood Judo Club, a member of the Bahamas Judo Federation (BJF), under Sensei Mickey Munnings. He is a four-time national champion and has aspirations of qualifying for the Olympics, as early as 2024 in Paris, France. Internationally, he has fought and won medals, particularly gold, at the CARIFTA Judo Championships, the Pan Am Judo Championships, the South Carolina State Championships, the President’s Cup, the ATJA &AJJF Judo National Championships, the US Judo Open and the USA Judo Junior Olympic National Championships just to name a few.

At the most recent South Carolina State Championships, Johnson won gold medals in the 55kg. (kilogram) Cadet, the 60kg. Cadet, the 60 IJF (International Judo Federation) Junior and the Men’s Brown Belt categories. At the most recent USA Judo Junior Olympics, he won a bronze medal in Cadets.

“We’re very proud of him,” said Sensei White. “He hit the ground running. He won four gold medals at the South Carolina State Championships and at the USA Junior Olympics, he competed against some of the top fighters on this side of the world. Right now, we’re getting ready to go into training camp to prepare for the US Open and the ATJA and AJJF Nationals.

“We expect him to be on the podium and possibly win his category at the US Open. There will be international athletes coming in from as far as South America but we expect him to bring home a couple gold medals. When he first came here, he was very shy, an introvert, but he had the will to win. He was a little unpolished but he developed and went to win multiple events. I have no doubt that he will be an Olympian in 2024 or 2028. It will be tough for him to get there in 2024 but I believe he is a dead lock for the Olympics in 2028.”

Johnson has been training with Sensei White and Black ICE Fitness for the past five years. He usually fights in more than one age group and weight class when he competes internationally.

“He had a good workout today and he’s ready to compete. He’s going for gold. We’re confident that he will be able to perform very well,” said Sensei White.

Johnson virtually attends Capstone Academy, right here in Nassau. He got involved in the sport of judo at age eight and has grown exponentially in the sport over the past five to six years, particularly since venturing to the US to train.

“If we were to apply Xavion’s late start, his location, his ‘mat time’ and fight experience, you would not expect his current level of success,” said mother Ordain. “He does not have the luxury of a large class size, which limits technical growth among other things. Xavion’s passion for judo is immeasurable and his personal drive is not normal for a child. Ever since he was nine and learned about weight categories, he kept himself on a strict diet. He does not eat junk food and he works out on his own volition two to three times per day. He has fought and won matches with a broken toe or finger. Xavion literally eats, sleeps, prays and breathes judo.”

Due to restraints from COVID-19, Johnson has not been able to train consistently, much less compete, over the past two years. His mother said he is determined to get back to regular action and develop to the point he needs to be at, in order to experience success.

“Xavion put his focus on weight lifting to increase his strength until he was able to safely restart training at his home dojo Eastwood Judo Club,” said Moss. “He is grateful to Sensei Mickey, D’Arcy Rahming of the federation and Joshua White of Black ICE Fitness for providing him with mats, a dummy, and online fitness classes to aid in his home workouts. He was proud to say he left COVID restrictions able to bench press 165 pounds and squat 200 pounds. We’re expecting great things from him.”

The Bahamas has never qualified for the Olympics in a sport other than athletics, swimming, tennis or boxing, but on his current trajectory, young Johnson is on the right path to reach the ultimate level of sports greatness in judo. The young Bahamian martial artist is embracing the journey.

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