South Wales construction company Jehu Project Services is set to provide a world class sporting arena for medal hopefuls in the sport of judo.

When finished, the WIS National Judo Dojo at the Welsh Institute of Sport, Cardiff, will provide state of the art facilities for elite athletes in the run up to the 2012 Olympics.

The word dojo is a Japanese term and refers to a formal training and competition base for martial arts.

The £1.1m project will see the construction of the new National Judo Dojo as well as a comprehensive sports science and medicine centre on the second floor which will benefit athletes across a number of sports.

Ken Evans, Jehu Project Services contract manager said: “This is a prestigious job for us at Jehu as it will provide Olympic hopefuls with a brand new home to be proud of.

“It will be a national facility for both training and competition and, with the Olympics just three years away, it will attract elite athletes from across Britain.”

The dojo is scheduled for completion in August.

Philip Carling, Chair of the Sports Council for Wales, said: “These developments are part of a long term programme to ensure the Welsh Institute of Sport is recognised as the centre for high performance in Wales.”

Wales National Judo Coach, Neil Adams MBE added: “To bring talent through effectively, it is absolutely essential that we have a dedicated facility for judo in Wales. It is the difference between division one and division two and we need the facilities to help us reach that upper platform.

“Having a dojo in Wales will provide Welsh Judo and its members with an identity and the mentality to succeed. I’m delighted that work has started – the new facility will give young talents the opportunity to make proper use of the fantastic coaching structure we already have in place here in Wales.”

Jehu has more than 70 years of construction experience in Wales in a variety of sectors, from retail and leisure, residential, healthcare and education as well as commercial and industrial. With offices based in both Bridgend and Haverfordwest, Jehu anticipates a turnover in excess of £40m in 2008-9 while Managing Director Marc Jehu has been announced as the winner of the Building Contractor of the Year at the 2008 People in Property: Props Awards Wales.

Marc Jehu, Managing Director and cofounder of Jehu Project Services, said: “It has been a successful year for Jehu Project Services. Despite the difficult market conditions, we have a strong order book with a number of new contract awards and we are starting work on several new sites within a matter of months “Our area of expertise is varied across a range of sectors and we believe that this is one of the reasons for our success. We are a company which has strong roots in Wales spanning over seven decades and we look forward to continue to grow throughout the coming year.”

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