Birmingham Optical masters the art of judo

Birmingham Optical had a front row view of a major judo tournament this month after supplying kit for an event near its Midlands home.

Nidek’s Tonoref III pre-screening device was chosen for the sight classification process at the 2017 International Blind Sports Association (IBSA) European Judo Championships in Wolverhampton.

The championships, held from August 4 to 6 at the University of Wolverhampton, attracted 900 spectators who watched a number of London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympic medallists compete.

British competitor Sam Skelley won the -100kg Gold after completing his sight classification at Aston University.

Rob Hartley, head of events and competitions at British Judo, said: ‘The team at Birmingham Optical were absolutely fantastic at working to our busy classification schedule and short notice. The Nidek Tonoref pre-screening device was quick and worked perfectly, which helped to keep us on schedule.