What We Do
Justin Cook
Justin started this whole ball rolling back before we had even formed El Toro Non-Profit. He was one of the initial catalysts of our vision. As a promising judo athlete, he asked my help in securing an introduction to a training coordinator in the Judo program at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. My career in Judo as a Marine competitor brought me in contact with many who worked and trained at the OTC. I made the introductions and Justin trained at the OTC. He is a recent graduate of Stanford Medical School.
Liana Mutia
Liana Mutia came to me as a 15 year-old high school student wanting to learn Judo. Within a year we realize she had a degenerative eye disease. Nonetheless, she trained and competed as a visually-impaired athlete at USA Judo’s President’s Cup tournament in Irving, Texas. She and her family were later invited to the Olympic Training Center, and as a result, joined the visually-impaired judo athletes training at the OTC. She also enrolled into nearby Colorado State University. Currently training with the Menomonee Judo Club in Chicago, Illinois, Liana will compete in Germany this spring with a goal of participating in the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo.
Lamar Dulin
Lamar Dulin had not been with me long before he and I traveled to a competition out of state. In Atlanta, Georgia he surprised my longtime friend Leo White by executing this former Olympian and NBC’s Olympic Sports guest commentator’s Makikomi throw. A graduate of Eastern Carolina University, he continues to train in Judo in Florida where he is studying to be a chiropractor and realize his goal in sports medicine.
Judah Harris
Judah Harris has been with me for just over two years. He came to El Toro Judo Club with his father, a disabled Marine veteran, and his sister. Last November, I took Judah, the youngest El Toro Judo Clubs student ever to the President’s Cup in Irvine, Texas, a national judo event where he won first place in his division. He is currently ranked 10th in his age group in the nation. He has competed in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Georgia and remains undefeated. Judah was selected to join the National Teams Duals Judo Team and compete in Deerfield, Illinois in May. He continues to prepare for the National Duals, local competitions, and for U.S. Open in Florida this summer.