Itinerant Graduate Student Graduates to Green Belt

The path from white belt to shodan (first degree black belt) is long and often difficult, taking several years of study. Many judoka take a meandering path in their studies, dropping out as life events require and returning when able. Cordell is one such example, having recently tested for, and on March 4th, 2026, being awarded with, his green belt and the rank of yonkyu. Cordell began his study of judo in approximately September of 2023, working from then until now to achieve this rank, which is significant for being both the halfway point to black belt and the last rank at which a judoka is typically considered a novice.

Left to Right - Joe Swede, Cordell, Sensei Chaye Thompson

Cordell’s journey into the art of judo has not always been consistent, having frequently been interrupted due to family duties and his studies. His work towards his masters in psychology has frequently called him away from the dojo for extended periods of time, and left him with limited opportunities for competition. Despite that, when away Cordell strives to keep up on his training by working on familiar skills as home with his grappling dummy. After obtaining his master, Cordell intends to spend some time working in his field to gather experience before pursing a Ph.D. in Psychology, with the goal of working in diagnostics.

On the mat, Cordell can typically be found at 5:30pm adult judo classes, as well as in the 7pm fundamentals classes. His favorite part of Judo is not only throwing, but being thrown, which he describes as “kinda fun”. His favorite technique is o-soto-gari.