While balancing running a business and training to fight some of the world’s best grapplers, Jeff Allen and his son Lucas continue to excel at excel at prestigious competitions.
The father and son duo went up against fighters from the United States, Brazil, Peru, and Kazakhstan at the World Grappling and BJJ Championship in Morristown, New Jersey in late April. Both Allens won their respective divisions, despite tangling with competitors who had significantly more time to train.
Allen runs a small engine repair business in Huntsville when not training while his son Lucas operates a landscaping company. In between balancing working from 9 to 5, Allen says the pair are often working past midnight leading up to competitions to make sure they’re sharp and their businesses will be in good hands while they’re gone.
“We started out as a hobby,” explains Allen.
He adds it’s become much more than just a hobby since, but he says they’re still at a disadvantage against some fighters. He points out how he fought a man from Kazakhstan who benefited from having an entourage with him featuring his trainers, coaches, and family. “You’ve got, in the division that we fight in, guys that actually train at an Olympic-level training centre,” adds Allen.
The Allens, along with their sensai Chris Muirhead, train at the Huntsville Judo Club.
“We’re proud to be where we are,” says Allen, who adds he always makes a point to bring his wife and young daughter to competitions.
The senior Allen, known affectionately by many in Muskoka as “Judo Jeff,” was inducted into the Huntsville Hall of Fame last year thanks in part to his extensive list of accomplishments. His son is still a teenager but already has an impressive trophy cabinet and may be on his way to following in his father’s footsteps as a hall of famer.
Next up for Allen is the 2024 International Judo Federation Vetreran and Kata World Championships from Nov. 4 to 11 in Las Vegas.
It will be his fourth time competing. He says he’s finished fourth, third, and second, so he hopes the pattern continues and he’s able to secure gold.
He explains it’s a little more difficult for Lucas, despite him being a highly-ranked grappler.
Allen says his son is 18 but, internationally, there isn’t a proper division for fighters his age so he competes in older age brackets. He adds he’s currently ranked eighth in the senior heavyweight division.
However, Allen is ranked three places above his son in that division.
This year, though, Jeff, Lucas, and Muirhead plan to compete in different divisions so they can maximize their results. “Last year we actually had to fight each other at the national championship,” says Allen, boasting he was able to best his son.
“We don’t want to run into that issue again,” he says.