Baltimore Martial Arts Academy

Tomas Drgon

Tomas Drgon, Judo Instructor

Tomas Drgon teaches Judo for adults and children at the Baltimore Martial Arts Academy. He first started learning judo when he was around 10 years old in Bratislava, Slovakia. “Here in America, kids wrestle,” he says. “In Slovakia, it’s judo.”

After he came to the United States, he started training with Sensei John Anderson. He was struck by the Sensei Anderson’s quiet confidence and easygoing personality from the beginning — qualities that he has tried to maintain as a teacher at the Baltimore Judo Club, part of the BMAA.

“It was different from most gyms you walk in and talk to the main guy — there is always some pushing” and some ego, he says. When he talked to Anderson, “from the first moment it’s like you’ve known him forever. He’s joking and he’s really relaxed.”

Tomas Drgon has been teaching judo for several years now at the Baltimore Judo Club, and like John Anderson before him, he has focused especially on judo’s newaza, or ground techniques. He has also taught judo throwing techniques at various other jiu-jitsu clubs in the Baltimore area — a few years ago, he was teaching up to five days a week at four different clubs.

“That’s when I got much better. I had to wrestle everyone,” he says. Today Sensei Drgon teaches primarily at the Baltimore Judo Club, and the students include his own son, Mattias, in the kids’ classes. “It’s very important that kids tumble around and so they don’t get scared when they bump heads,” he says. “If they wrestle in a gym, it’s perfect — it makes it into a game.”

A biologist at the National Institutes of Health, Sensei Drgon sees judo as much training for the mind as for the body. The sport itself is often compared to chess, with attacks and counterattacks. But the founder, Jigaro Kano, was also interested in the public welfare. “Judo has this idealistic philosophy — the public education aspect,” Sensei Drgon says. “That appeals to me. And then the club has this long history — a lot of really good judoka came through this club.”

He also gets inspiration from judo elders who have been active in the Mid-Atlantic region for more than 50 years — like John Anderson, James Takemori, and Edwin Takemori.

“You look at these guys who have been doing it for a long time, and they all have this life attitude that I really admire,” he says. “That is something to imitate.”

See Sensei Drgon demonstrate a basic judo technique below: