Singer Jota fires up judo spirit

Jota in a scene from “Cool Kiz on the Block” on KBS

K-pop boy band MADTOWN’s vocalist, Jota, has flexed his muscles on TV as a former “judoka.”

KBS sports variety show “Cool Kiz on the Block”

introduced the star last November as a member of the program’s celebrity judo team to compete against clubs across Korea in a competition for amateurs.

It did not take long for the star, 21, to top the team with his skills. He won multiple matches against competitors who had years of experience and kept impressing the team’s two coaches, 2004 Athens Summer Olympics gold medalist Lee Won-hee and 2012 London Summer Olympics bronze medalist Cho Jun-ho.

On Tuesday, Jota’s father visited Dongji High School in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, to watch his son’s game. The celebrity judo team was having a team match against selective judokas from the southeastern Gyeongsang Province. Jota is a graduate of the school, which is known for producing skillful judokas.

Jota won his game and kneeled to bow to his father. Afterwards, he became emotional and sobbed.

Jota said in the program he was a judo player until he damaged an ankle during high school and gave up his dream of becoming a professional judoka.

He decided to become a singer after he saw elementary school classmate Jung Eun-ji, a member of K-pop girl band Apink, on TV.

“After I saw her, I too wanted to please people as an entertainer,” Jota said.