Army judoka stood tall at the 2026 Oceania Police and Military Judo Teams Championships in Melbourne, despite taking on opponents who towered over them. 

In a match for the over 100kg weight class, Signaller Billy Waters took on police sergeant and former Olympian Jake Andrewartha, who stood at 195cm and weighed 135kg.

Signaller Waters weighed in just shy of 100kg and stands 170cm tall. 

Despite the significant size disadvantage, he wasn’t worried and performed much better than expected.

The fight was even to start. Both exchanged grips and attempted throws with no score, but after two-and-a-half minutes the Olympian executed a hard throw that won the match.

“He’s a big guy, so to hold him that long was an achievement, but I train with a lot of fighters over 100kg. To me, it has been great to get the opportunity to participate and fight national-level players,” Signaller Waters said.

Two mixed teams of ADF and police judoka faced off against a team of Oceania representatives from Fiji, Samoa and Guam.

The Oceania team won the competition, with Australia One in second and Australia Two third.

'He’s a big guy, so to hold him that long was an achievement.'

Signaller Waters bounced back in his second fight with a win over a Fijian national representative – the only ADF judoka to win against Oceania.

He said it was an honour to compete under the ADF banner, with competition a great way to spread awareness about the opportunities it provides.

“It was very intense, but also rewarding and fun, especially the team events. We can use sports as an avenue to promote Defence as well, so I want more people to join and see the benefits of it,” Signaller Waters said.

He joined the Army Reserve because he wanted to volunteer and serve, which also carries over to his goal for judo, running classes for vision-impaired judoka.

“What really attracts me to judo is you need to have a goal, similar to anything in life. People with vision impairment can train judo but there are not many clubs that offer that,” he said.

“I hope we can offer this service and be able to support them not only at a community level but also the international level. That’s my ultimate goal.”

Another standout performance was orange belt Private Jung Kim’s upset win over black belt Private Charlie Laidlaw.

ADF Combat Sports Association President and Judo Australia Military and Police Committee Chair Lieutenant Colonel Derek Morris said the competition was a great success.

“The Oceania Judo Union are moving us up the program for the next one because the camaraderie and audience participation – everything they want – was there,” he said.

To get involved, email adf.combatsports@defence.gov.au