Coaches
Gerald Lafon
Director of Coaching, 6th Dan, USJA Master Coach
He was born in New York City in 1951. In 1961, his family moved from Secaucus, New Jersey to Paris, France. Since his father Pierre had been a judoplayer in the 1940s in France and England, he too got the “Judo bug” and started his training in 1965 under Jacques Bardel, 2nd dan. Upon his return to the U.S. in 1969, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1970-71, spending one tour of duty in Vietnam as a field radio operator. In 1972, he continued his Judo training under Benso Tsuji, 6th dan and became the head instructor of San Diego More...
Bernie Semel
Assistant Coach, 6th Dan, USA Judo Master Teacher Class A
He was born in Norfolk, Virginia in 1950. After five years of participating in various sports at the local YMCA, his father encouraged him to take up Judo, which he did in 1963 when he joined the Tidewater Judo Club. Under the initial instruction of Y. Jack Palmer, a 3rd class brown belt, he got a solid and well-rounded education in the basics of Judo. In addition, he learned about Seriyoku Zenyo (Maximum efficiency with minimum effort) and Jita Kyoei (Mutual benefit, mutual welfare), which taught him to give back to Judo, which he has done for over 40 years. He earned his senior brown belt on his sixteenth birthday. He served as an assistant instructor in the senior class for many years. More...
Fereydoun “Fred” Horeh
Assistant coach, 1st Dan, USJA Level I certified coach
He was born in Tehran, Iran in 1968. He started wrestling at age seven under his father's tutelage, then studied Judo at fourteen at the Esteghlal Shargh Judo Club in Tehran, under A. Shamloo, 4th Dan. He was an assistant coach at the club from 1988-94. He received his black belt in San Diego from Jesse Jones, 8th Dan, in 2002. He has been an assistant coach for the kids class since 2005, shortly after his son Amin and his daughter Ida joined our program
