Obituary: Danny King

It is with great sadness that we share the news that Danny King passed away on Saturday 16^th May 2020, aged 42, at home unexpectedly of natural causes.

Danny leaves his wife Leanne and three children: Jamie, Bobby and Hannah.

A qualified electrician, Dan ran his own successful business, Dantech, which will continue under the guidance of Leanne and the other staff.

Danny retired from Judo at 16 after breaking his leg and returned to the sport as a parent in 2013.  Danny fully embraced his return to judo and earned his competitive 1^st Dan within a few months.  Through his hard work and commitment to training Danny was awarded his competitive 4^th Dan in November 2019.

Most weekends you would find Dan competing or coaching matside at a local or national competition (sometimes both) supporting not only his own children but many of the members from the club.  His saying was “We fight and then feast” and on most weekends he would stop for dinner on the way home from an event to talk through the day.

In his early years within the sport Danny was a member of Docklands Judo club in Dagenham and then moved Jo-Dan Judo club in Redbridge during his teenage years.  For the last seven years Danny has been a member of Bishops Stortford Judokwai.  He was a much-loved member of the club as a training partner, coach, committee member and friend.

Danny enjoyed competition and thrived in the domestic masters circuit, making many friends along the way.  He particularly enjoyed the Veterans European Championships in Glasgow where he earned a respectable 5^th place in the individual and a bronze in the team event. Another highlight of his competitive masters career was his Bronze medal at the 2019 Commonwealth Judo Championships in Walsall.

Danny lived his life to the full at a hundred miles an hour, he was a committed family man and a staunch West Ham supporter. He was often known to attend 2 or 3 events in a day because he never wanted to let anyone down.  He was also the first to offer someone a lift, a cup of tea or a pint and will be remembered for the generous and kind soul that he was.

Message from Leanne:

The funeral will be held on Wednesday 3^rd June.  Leaving our home at 12:45pm

Due to the strict social distancing measures the service will only be restricted to invite only.  If you would like to send flowers, please send them to: 20 Blackbushe, Bishops Stortford, Herts, CM23 5EY.  The flowers will be kept in the front garden for all to see.  If you would like to donate to a charity instead, please may I ask that you donate to Bishops Stortford Judokwai.  Anyone who knew Danny would have know how much this club meant to us as a family, the support they have shown over the years and in the most recent week has been incredible.

Bank Name: Lloyds
Sort Code: 30-90-84
Account Number: 01429117