05/09/2026
Final Update – Thank You from Team Judo Bobby
Go fund me closed.
What an incredible journey.
A few months ago we launched this GoFundMe with a simple dream: get Bobby Girdwood (Judo Bobby) from Kinross, Western Australia, to the historic first-ever Inclusive Lausanne Adaptive Judo Grand Slam. Thanks to every single one of you who donated, shared, cheered, and believed, that dream became reality.
Bobby stepped onto the same tatami as the world’s elite in Lausanne, competed in the Adaptive -90kg (II1) division, and came home as Adaptive -90kg Judo Grand Slam Champion.
He delivered on the wish he shared at the start: to win the first Adaptive Grand Slam title and make Australia, his judo family, and everyone who backed him proud.
The experience went even further. Bobby not only won gold on the biggest adaptive stage judo has ever seen, he also got to commentate alongside the legendary Neil Adams MBE – a once-in-a-lifetime moment sharing the microphone with one of the true greats of the sport.
From dual Australian National Champion (Adaptive + mainstream brown belt) and world No. 3 ranking, through the silver medals at the Adaptive European Championships and Virtus Games, to now standing as a Grand Slam champion – this is the payoff for years of hard work, resilience, and pure love of judo at Kano Judo Schools
To every donor, every person who shared the campaign, every follower who kept the energy high, and every member of the who supported us: thank you. You didn’t just help cover flights, accommodation and competition costs – you helped write a new chapter in adaptive judo history and showed what community can make possible.
Special thanks to Grant and the whole Girdwood family for leading the charge, to the coaches and support crew who got Bobby ready, and to everyone who made Lausanne feel like home.
This isn’t the end – far from it. Bobby has unfinished business at the European Championships in Serbia in November, and the next chapter of the journey is already underway as we work to get him there.
We’ll keep you posted every step of the way.
From all of us on Team Judo Bobby: we are so grateful. You made Lausanne possible, and your continued support will help write the next page too.
Bob Girdwood
Oss.
