Deborah "Debbie" Allan (born 21 July 1975) is a former British judoka.[1] She won three European Championship medals, including a gold at the 1999 European Judo Championships. Allan was scheduled to compete at the 2000 Summer Olympics, but was disqualified at the weigh-in for being over the weight limit.

Deborah Allan
Personal information
NationalityBritish
Born (1975-07-21) 21 July 1975 (age 48)
OccupationJudoka
Sport
SportJudo
Weight class–52 kg
ClubCamberley Judo Club
Medal record
Representing  Great Britain
European Judo Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1994 Gdańsk -52 kg
Silver medal – second place 1998 Oviedo -57 kg
Gold medal – first place 1999 Bratislava -52 kg
Profile at external databases
JudoInside.com298

Career edit

Allan is from Camberley, Surrey, England, and trained at the Camberley Judo Club.[2][3] In 1993, she became champion of Great Britain, winning the featherweight division at the British Judo Championships.[4] The following year in 1994, she won a bronze medal at the 1994 European Judo Championships[1] and retained her British title.[4] Also in 1994, she was involved in a row with coach Mark Earle, which led to him being temporarily suspended by British Judo.[5]

In 1995, she won her third consecutive British featherweight title.[4] Her next major success came when she won a silver medal at the 1998 European Judo Championships before winning the gold medal at the 1999 European Judo Championships, in the gold medal match she defeated Paula Saldanha.[3][6]

Allan qualified for the under 52kg event at the 2000 Summer Olympics, but was 400 grams (0.88 lb) over the weight limit at the weigh-in. Her coach Diane Bell cut Allan's hair and made her stand naked on the weighing scales. Allan was still 100 grams (0.22 lb) above the weight limit, and so was disqualified from the event.[7][8] She was banned by the British Judo selection panel for six months, although this was later overturned on appeal.[9]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Deborah Allan profile". Judo Inside. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  2. ^ Soames, Nicholas (19 September 2000). "Judo: Officials to object over Allan ban". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 18 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  3. ^ a b Nicksan, Phillip (5 October 1999). "World Judo Championships: Explosive Allan looks to prove her worth". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  4. ^ a b c "British Championships - Event results". Judo Inside. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  5. ^ Nicksan, Phillip (26 July 1994). "Judo: Allan takes blame for row". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Deborah Allen". Judo Inside. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  7. ^ Soames, Nicholas (18 September 2000). "Judo: Inquiry called as Allan fails weight". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 18 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  8. ^ Law, Mark (June 2008). The Pyjama Game: A Journey into Judo. Aurum Press. ISBN 9781781310069. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  9. ^ Soames, Nicholas (16 January 2001). "Judo: Allan appeal sees ban overturned". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.

External links edit