Our Tradition

We have a tradition at Welcome Mat of being pragmatic, unconventional, being able to adapt, creating opportunities, taking risks, emphasizing function over aesthetics, and generally doing what it takes to get the job done and get it done with a high ratio of success.  In doing so, we have not forgotten that the martial arts can, and should, be used as a tool to improve the lives of the people who are doing them.  No matter the age or sex of the person participating, training in judo, jujitsu and other martial arts can build self-confidence, physical fitness, a positive outlook on life, discipline, provide recreation and teach focus.  Here at Welcome Mat, we teach you the best skills available and not merely "show off" to impress you.  If you are successful, then we are successful.

Our History   

In 1969, Steve Scott started teaching judo and jujitsu at the Marlborough Community Center in Kansas City, Missouri.  He was a senior in high school and wanted an extra place for his training partners and he to work out.  Assured by the community center director that he could practice there as long as he taught a class during the week that was open to the public, the Welcome Mat Judo and Jujitsu Club was started. Our club name was inspired by the famous Welcome Mat Dojo operated by Gene LeBell and Hayward Nishioka in Los Angeles, California in the 1960s and 1970s. The name of that dojo and the name of our club indicate that everyone who wants to train with us is welcome.   While we have no official connection with the original Welcome Mat, the philosophy is the same.  Welcome Mat thrived and in 1976, we added judo classes at the Lykins Community Center.  As the club grew, we started teaching at the Kansas City North Community Center in 1981.  Classes have also been held at the Penn Valley Community College as well and we are always looking for new locations to offer instruction.  Presently,  Steve Scott coaches at the Kansas City North Community Center, the Sylvester Powell Community Center, Whiteman Air force Base.  Welcome Mat Black Belts also teach at a variety of other locations.  Everyone is welcome at Welcome Mat.

Our Results

 Welcome Mat has made a positve impact in the lives of thousands of people.  As Steve Scott often says; "Judo was my ticket out."  This means that his involvement in judo shaped him as a man and made him a  better human being.  If it worked for him, it could work for others...and it has.  Our record of achievement in competition is something we are proud of, but our record of achievement in making a difference in people's lives is something in which we take greater pride. The type of no-frills training offered at Welcome Mat has  developed close to 100 individual athletes who have won national judo championships on the junior, senior and masters levels.  Well over 350 individuals have also won medals in national or international judo competition.  We have also trained close to 60 individual athletes who have won national sambo championships and at least 200 individuals who have won medals in national sambo championships.  Our jujitsu program has developed numerous black belts in Shingitai Jujitsu and, although jujitsu is not a competitive activity for us at Welcome Mat, several of our jujitsu athletes have entered sport jujitsu events and won national championships in that activity as well.  We have developed 3 World Sambo Champions, 2 Pan American Games Champions, a member of the 1996 U.S. Olympic Judo Team and numerous athletes who have represented the United States at the World Judo Championships, World Junior (under 21) Judo Championships, World University Games, International High School Judo Championships, Pacific Rim Judo Championships, Pan American Judo Championships (both Senior and Junior) and many international judo and sambo events in North and South America, Europe and Asia.   Several years ago, an individual who moved to the area from another city asked one of our black belts "What does it cost to get a black belt here?"  The reply was "A lot of hard work and sweat."   That's an accurate way to sum it up.   While not everyone may want to compete on the international level, our goal is to help you enhance your life through the study of judo, jujitsu or sambo.  We have a positive atmosphere here and everyon is treated with respect.  Our motto is; "Success is an on-going process."

Authentic and Legitimate Sambo Training

A reporter for our local newspaper who was covering a national sambo event held at Welcome Mat once wrote; "Sambo isn't for the faint of heart."  He was right.  Sambo (also spelled sombo) is a rugged form of grappling that places an emphasis on function over aesthetics.  Welcome Mat has been a leader in the development of the sport of sambo for many years.  We were the first club or program in the entire Midwest to offer Russian sambo back in 1977.  Athletes from Welcome Mat have competed in many local, regional, national and international sambo championships.  Three World Sambo Champions and two Pan American Games Sambo Champions have been Welcome Mat athletes.  This photos shows one of those World Champions, Chris Heckadon, doing a leglock on team-mate Bob Rittman. Welcome Mat has hosted several National Sambo Championships, the Pan American Games Trials and held the very first National AAU Women's Sambo Championships in 1980 and the first National AAU Youth Sambo Championships also in 1980. Welcome Mat has won the National AAU Team Championship several times and about 60 individuals from our club have won National Championships in sambo.  Our Head Coach, Steve Scott, is a member of the U.S. Sombo Association's Hall of Fame.  Sambo is a rough and tumble grappling style that was developed in the old Soviet Union in the 1930s emphasizing throws, takedowns, holds, armlocks and leglocks.  When training at Welcome Mat, you get a heavy dose of Russian sambo at every practice and the coaches at Welcome Mat have a high level of expertise and ability at the sport.  If you want real, hard-core and authentic sambo training, we hope you choose to train at Welcome Mat.  Technically, sambo is similar to judo, but the emphasis is on submission techniques rather than throwing an opponent.  However, the throws and takedowns of sambo are extrememly effective and similar to judo.  Some people mistakenly believe that sambo is primarily groundfighting.  Sambo emphasizes effective groundfighting, but throws and takedowns are an important element of getting an opponent to the mat. Sambo has some of the most technically advanced armlocks and leglocks seen in any form of grappling or wrestling.  Many people have asked if there is a belt rank system in sambo.  The Soviets, and now the Russians, still follow the tried-and-true system of belts.  We do too.  The sambo wrestler wearing the red jacket is a red belt and the sambo wrestler wearing the blue jacket is a blue belt.  Some groups use a belt rank system similar to the martial arts for sambo.  We at Welcome Mat choose to follow the traditional approach to the subject and not use a belt system.  The only purpose of a belt is to hold the jacket together. Our approach is to incorporate a great deal of realistic sambo training in each jujitsu and judo training session at Welcome Mat.  We do not curently have a specific class or workout designated strictly for sambo and it is recommended tht if you want to learn about sambo, enroll in the classes that Steve Scott coaches on Mondays at Kansas City North and Thursdays at Mission, Kansas.

Shingitai Jujitsu Training

Welcome Mat offers Shingitai Jujitsu (also referred to as SJJ) as one of its mainstay programs.  Shingitai is a training philosophy and approach to teaching and learning jujitsu.  "Shin" indicates the determined mental approach to training and personal combat.  It's the "fighting heart" necessary to be successful in any form of grappling or martial art. "Gi" is the realistic technical approach to performing the skills fo jujitsu and martial arts.  Functional, realisitc and pragmatic skills are emphasized over aesthetically pretty, and possible less-effective techniques.  "Tai" is the physical approach to training.  Functional strength and aerobic fitness are very important for succes in any martial art or style of grappling.  Physical fitness is one of the key elements of our approach to jujitsu.  This "Shingitai" philosophy is a fairly old one emphasized in several fighting systems from Japan and John Saylor made it the central part of his approach to training, especially in the martial arts,  back in the early 1980s. SJJ's main emphasis is self-defense, but also has a national sport jujitsu grappling championship yearly as well as local and regional SJJ sport jujtisu events held here at Welcome Mat.  Our emphasis here at Welcome Mat is self-defense SJJ training, but our athletes also have been very successful in Shingitai jujitsu tournaments.  In 1984, John organized the Shingitai Jujitsu Association to promote this philosophy of training and Steve Scott, Welcome Mat's Head Coach, joined John Saylor's new organization.  Steve and John were (and continue to be) good friends and shared the concept of Shingitai as a central part of their coaching and personal philosophy.  Welcome Mat is an enthsiastic supporter of the Shingitai Jujitsu Association and all belt ranks in jujitsu at our club are issued through this organization.  This photo shows John Saylor teaching ude garami, the bent arm lock, at one of his clinics held at Welcome Mat.  Shingitai Jujitsu is considered one of the "mainstream" approaches to teaching jujitsu in the United States and recognizes the Japanese masters of jujitsu and judo who came before us as the people who gave us the gift of jujitsu.  Our "Shingitai" approach to jujitsu is a serious and realistic way of teaching and practicing jujitsu.  SJJ is a pioneer in the concept of a "self-defense athlete" meaning that a person doesn't have to compete in a sport to be considered an "athlete." John Saylor has often said that Shingitai is the "pentathlon of jujitsu" meaning that any practical and effective skills are welcomed and practiced in our approach to grappling, self-defense and martial arts. John wrote an excellent book on his approach to training for the martial arts, titled "STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING SECRETS OF THE WORLD'S GREATEST FIGHTERS."  Call John Saylor at (419) 938-6089 to order your copy. 

Kodokan Judo and Sport Judo Training

Welcome Mat has been a leader in the sport of judo in the Kansas City area for many years.  Athletes from our club have represented the United States in the Olympic Games, World Judo Championships, World University Games, International High School Championships and many other major judo events.  We have hosted numerous training camps and clinics for many years and continue to do so.  Our staff of coaches have exstensive experience in all levels of judo.  If you want to learn technically sound and realistic judo in an atmosphere that is serious, but enjoyable, then Welcome Mat is your kind of place.  The founder of our club, Steve Scott, continues to be the Head Coach and technical director, but a staff of excellent black belts provide some of the best training in judo you will find anywhere.  All of our coaches have extensive experience as both athletes and coaches and have gone through various coach education programs to insure the best quality instruction possible.  Welcome Mat has hosted numerous national, regional and local judo events, including the USJI National Ladder Tournament, USJA High School Championships, National AAU Senior Judo Championships and other top-quality events.  Welcome Mat hosted the first Missouri State Judo Championship in 1976 and has led the way in local and regional judo development.  We are an active member club in the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and host many AAU judo events.  Our coaching philosophy is pragmatic, practical and realistic and based on years of success in all levels of judo competition and training.  If your goal is to fulfill your potential and become a better person through hard and sincere training in judo, then you have found your place to train.  Our motto is; "Success is an on-going process."

Our Head Coach, Steve Scott
Steve Scott started judo in 1965 at the age of 12 and his life has been linked with judo, sambo and jujitsu ever since.  He is a legitimate 7th Grade Black Belt in Kodokan Judo and 7th Grade Black Belt in Shingitai Jujitsu and is a member of the U.S. Sombo Association's Hall of Fame.  He started training in the sport of sambo in 1976 and introduced this Russian form of grappling to the Midwest in 1977.  He is considered one of the leading technical experts in sambo in the United States.
Someone once said; “One thing about Steve Scott is that he makes you think!” As a coach since 1969, Steve Scott has made it his life’s work for competitive, self-defense and recreational athletes to not only think, but also perform to the best of their individual abilities. As the Head Coach of the Welcome Mat Judo, Jujitsu and Sambo Club in Kansas City, Missouri, Steve has developed 3 World Sambo Champions, a member of the 1996 U.S. Olympic Judo Team, numerous Pan American Games Champions and medal winners, Champions in the World Arnold Classic Submission Grappling Championship, numerous athletes who were members of official U.S. Teams that competed in World Judo and Sambo Championships and many other international events, over 150 individual athletes who have been U.S. National Champions in judo, sambo, sport jujitsu and submission grappling and hundreds of other outstanding champions in regional, state and local events in these grappling sports. He has served as the head coach for many official U.S. judo and sambo teams that have competed at the World Championships, Pan American Games, International High School Championships, Pan American Annual Championships and many other international events. He has trained, coached and competed in North America, South America, Europe and Japan. His passion for many years has been coaching and his goal as a coach has been to use the grappling sports as a vehicle to improve the lives of the athletes he has worked with. Steve often says that judo “was his ticket out.” His involvement in judo, jujitsu and sambo has made him a better human being and instilled positive values in him that he has tried to pass along to others. As an athlete, he competed frequently in judo and sambo, winning two golds and a bronze in the National AAU Sambo Championships, as well as numerous other regional, state and local events in both sports from 1965 to 1983 and in 1987.  Steve even met his wife Becky (see her sports biogoraphy on our Hall of Fame page) at a judo torunament.  Steve also actively competed in the Scottish Highland Games and amateur Strongman contests in the United States for many years and was a National Master's (40-44 age group) Champion.  Active in the Amateur Athletic Union’s programs in judo, sambo and sport jujitsu, Steve was one of the 3 founding members of the U.S. Sombo Association in 1985 and has served as the National Coach Development Chairman and National Junior (under 21) Head Coach and Development Chairman for USA Judo, Inc. (the governing body of judo recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee).  He has been involved nationally with the United States Judo Association, the National AAU Judo Committee and the Shingitai Jujitsu Association. Steve has authored several books including: ARMLOCK ENCYCLOPEDIA, CHAMPIONSHIP SAMBO, SECRETS OF THE CROSS-BODY ARMLOCK (along with Bill West), JUJI GATAME HANDBOOK (along with Bill West), PRINCIPLES OF SHINGITAI JUJITSU (along with John Saylor), THE MARTIAL ARTS TERMINOLOGY HANDBOOK, GRAPPLER'S BOOK OF STRANGLES AND CHOKES, VITAL LEGLOCKS, GROUNDFIGHTING PINS AND BREAKDOWNS, HARDCORE ARMLOCKS and COACHING ON THE MAT. His DVDs include; SECRETS OF THE CROSS-BODY ARMLOCK, WINNING JUDO and CHAMPIONSHIP SAMBO. He has also written numerous articles for a variety of judo magazines, journals and newsletters for many years and has conducted over 250 clinics and seminars all across the United States.