AUBURN - Taken literally the word judo means “the way of flexibility.” It is this principle, in all its definitions - physically, mentally and spiritually - that first drew longtime Cayuga Community College and Empire State Games instructor Peter Petrosino to the martial art.

“I started in 1966,” Petrosino said. “It is a very ancient art form and it is also an Olympic sport. It's the kind of thing that the more you do it, the more you learn about yourself and who you are and about other people and relationships. The higher you go the more inward you go. It is a very intense experience. It is a lifetime pursuit.”

Until he retired in 1997, Petrosino spent most of his life teaching physical education. In 1968, he started introducing judo as a credit class to CCC students.

“It pretty much flourished,” Petrosino said. “Since then I've trained at least 50 black belts and national competitors. I think it has been helpful to a lot of students who have gone on to be police officers or corrections officers. One student even went on to the secret service, but I think whatever they have gone on to do, this has been a useful part of what they learned. Students learn confidence and to persevere... and to get along with a wide variety of people in very intense relationships.”

Even after retiring from teaching, Petrosino has maintained an active hand in judo instruction with summer classes at CCC, which have been very popular and has earned some dedicated followers.

“I was taking classes here,” Brad Meaker said. “My friend was always talking about

(judo) and I was always into martial arts. Now I've been doing this for four years. I missed a year when I was at college, but I never wanted to leave it. So I decided to come back this summer and continue training.”

Petrosino's classes have also drawn some new faces.

“I've been doing this about a year,” Justin Gilmore said. “My father got me into it and encouraged me a lot. I thought it would be a lot of fun to do and good way to relieve stress and learn a lot about myself.”

In 1978, Petrosino was approached by the Empire State Games committee to organize a judo tournament for the game's Central Region, an opportunity he jumped at.

“We developed the model on the Olympics,” Petrosino said. “The Empire Games are great, they inspire young people to get involved in all sorts of sports and give them a chance to compete. It has been a great place for a lot of national and international athletes to start out.”

Petrosino said that over the years the tournament has evolved to give competitors the best opportunity to take advantage of the experience.

“In the Olympics you only get one chance and then you are eliminated,” Petrosino said. “We've made it (a round-robin format) so you get at least four fights and gain experience and have a chance to develop.”

Since 1978, CCC and Petrosino have played host to competitors from all over the Central Region. Sunday, the gymnasium will see action yet again as the 28th annual Empire State Games Central Region Men's and Women's Judo Open Competition hits Spartan Hall.

“We've had as many as 60 competitors here,” Petrosino said. “There is no pre-registration and no entry fee. All you need are credentials to compete and you can play. It is all sponsored by the state and I think a really wonderful experience.”

Petrosino said that as part of the tournament he tries to give the audience a little background so that they can follow along with a sport that can be a little difficult to follow for newcomers.

“We try to give a little educational show,” Petrosino said. “The scoring can be a little confusing. Basically, you want to get your opponent to submit or you can earn points for a decision match. But once you watch a few matches you pretty much get the hang of it and you know what is going on.”

Sunday, some of Petrosino's own students will be hitting the mat to try out their skills.

“I think I'm a little nervous,” Gilmore said. “There are going to be a lot of people, but I'll just have to try to relax myself. This is going to be my first competition. I feel pretty good about it. I've learned to take a break fall. I think I'm going to learn a lot from this competition and it will help me on my way to my black belt.”

Other students like Meaker have faced competition several times and said that it s a great learning experience.

“I've entered twice,” Meaker said. “The first time I won one out of four matches, the next time I won four out of five. I'm used to practicing with the same set of grapplers Here you get to go against other people. I like the challenge of it and seeing a black belt on the other side of the mat and I know that one way or the other I'm going to learn something.”

Petrosino said that he is looking forward to a good turnout for what really can be some exciting competition.

“We can go full contact,” Petrosino said. “Most other martial arts can't without someone getting injured. Judo is ever evolving and we try to have the maximum freedom to explore. We don't allow anyone to come in and try to injure someone, they get disqualified and they all know that. We don't allow violence. This is a controlled muscular act, like gymnastics or wrestling. It is about exploring and learning about yourself.”