Spring Break
Judo champion Malloy inspires teammates
Ryan Fernandez
Issue date: 10/13/09 Section: Sports
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Malloy is now the club's captain, and she said she credits her teammates with helping her achieve a gold medal victory at the 2009 U.S. Open Championships last month.
"Judo is a one-man sport, but you can't really win without a team," she said. "You can't train by yourself."
Yoshihiro Uchida, head coach for the SJSU judo club, said Malloy sets an example of hard work that her teammates follow.
"She sets a standard for others," he said. "They respect her, because she never moans or groans about anything."
As captain of the SJSU judo club, Malloy "enforces the team principles of hard work and respect," said teammate Conor Driscoll, a student enrolled in the judo class.
"She goes out of her way to make sure everyone has the same mindset on the mat," he said.
Assistant coach Jose Bencosme, who also won a gold medal at the U.S. Open, said Malloy was an excellent choice for club captain.
"She's very strong, mentally and physically," he said. "She can will herself to do anything."
Malloy said she hails from Oak Harbor, Wash., where she started training at the local military base when she was 6 years old.
She said her father participated in judo during college and that the base offered her lessons for free.
"Dad enrolled my brothers," she said. "And I kept asking him, 'Why can't I do it?'"
Malloy, a senior advertising major and account executive for the Spartan Daily advertising staff, said the practice of judo requires a strong body, combining a person's physical strength with speed and accuracy.
She said her daily routine consists of early morning training, followed by classes and judo practice in the late afternoon.
She said her training regimen is no longer as intense as it was during the U.S. Open, when she had to train twice a day, running and weight training according to a circuit program specially designed by one of her coaches.
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