I fought men in judo since there were no women competitors

Mrs Jean-Louis advises sportsmen against putting money and self-interest ahead of sport. [Photo: Jennifer Wachie]

When you walk into her house, the first thing that catches your eye is her rich trophy cabinet at the corner of her living room.

Mrs Jean-Louis, 63, is one of the most accomplished sportswomen Kenya has produced since Independence. Her prowess in martial arts saw her win many competitions and she boasts of over 100 trophies. She has won in judo and shooting and is accomplished in karate and aikido.

Her journey began in 1965, two years after Independence, at the Police Judo Club in Nakuru. She was just 13 years old and has never looked back. In a sport considered masculine, that did not go down well with her family. “My family was not happy with my choice of sport especially my mother. She discouraged me cautioning me of the dangers involved,” she says. “But I was determined to play judo because that’s where my heart was,” she adds.

She admits her journey to the top was not easy in a sport where the darker the belt, the more successful you are. “To move from one belt to the other I had to fight people stronger and better than me,” she says. “I fought men because there were no women judokas to compete against,” she adds.

She earned her Dan black belt in 1979 and carried on teaching upcoming judokas. She says to succeed in judo, one must to learn how to fall. “When you master the skill of falling, you go places with the sport,” she says.

She reigned as the judo national champion in the early 1980s until she quit competitive sport after suffering a knee injury. “An encounter with a street boy left me seriously injured forcing me out of competition and I focused on teaching,” she says.

She made history in 1989 by becoming the first female referee in East and Central Africa. In 1991 she represented the East and Southern Africa Judo Confederation (ESAJC) at the International Federation of Judo (IFJ) in Barcelona, Spain together with Dong Seong, another referee from South Africa.

She made history again in 1993 by becoming the first female referee and judge at the ESAJC international judo tournament in Madagascar. This earned her the position of Commissioner of Referees for East and Central Africa. She held the position for eight years and handed over in February.

In 1980, she ventured into shooting, getting all her targets on her first day of shooting. In 1990 she made history in shooting by beating Olympian Shuaib Adam to win the national title. She was at it again in 1991, winning her second title in a row. She also taught shooting at Nairobi School in the 1980s.

She married Sam Jean-Louis in London in 1971 and they have a son, Clint Jean-Louis, who has followed in her footsteps. Clint perfected the art of shooting and became the junior national champion in 1990. He is now a doctor in Spain where he lives with his wife and two children.

She attributes her success to her husband and son. “My husband and son have given me moral and financial support that helped me achieve my goals,” she says.

She advises Kenyan sportspeople against putting money and self-interest ahead of sport. “I was in sports for the love of it, not the financial benefits,” she adds.