Get the scoop on 2019's National Massage Championships

At Massage Warehouse we were extremely proud to be a sponsor of the second edition of the National Massage Championships, which took place this year on the 29th and 30th of September at the Olympia Centre in London.

We truly believe that the National Massage Championships are a crucial way of building the massage industry within the UK and demonstrating to the public the skills and value of our profession. 

The championships bring together competitors from across the country as well as a team of esteemed judges with decades of experience between them. 

• Head Judge - Susan Findlay - a specialist in Oncology Massage and author of ‘Sports Massage for Therapists’.

• Pauline Baxter - the director and owner of the Academy of On-Site Massage.

• Sunita Passi - the founder of Tri-Dosha, an Ayurvedic training centre.

• Bhavesh T. Joshi - principal of the London School of Massage.

• Jeppe Tengbjerg - CEO of the International Massage Association and host of the World Championships in Massage in Denmark.

• Earle Abrahamson - the chair of the Massage Training Institute, Vice-Chair of the General Council for Sports Tissue Therapists and member of the board for soft tissue therapy at the Complementary and Natural Health Care Council.

• Beata Aleksandrowicz - creator of the Pure Massage Spa Training Method.

• Meghan Mari - the Co-Director and Founder of Jing Advanced Massage Training.

• Mary Dalgleish - the current Vice President of the Federation of Holistic Therapists (FHT).

• Emma Gilmore - founder and Director of School of Bodywork. 

• Dympna O’Brien - co-founder of Quantum Metta School of Massage.

• Kush Kumar - founder of international professional association ThinkTree Hub.

• Ryan Hoyme -known as MassageNerd Ryan has been inducted into both the International and American Massage Therapy Halls of Fame. 

With 6 distinct categories, the competitors had an hour to wow the judges with their treatment techniques and connection to their clients in the following styles of massage; 

• Advanced Massage

• SPA/Wellness Massage

• Freestyle Massage

• Eastern Massage

• Chair Massage

• Swedish/Deep Tissue Massage

Check out our highlights from this year's competition!

What were the highlights this year?

We caught up with returning judge Sunita Passi who told us this year had seen a 20% increase in competitors. As well as being great to see more therapists coming together to compete and to network together, a increase in numbers also brought many more massage styles and techniques making it even more fascinating for the crowds to watch! 

It was great to see some returning competitors from last year but also lots of new faces taking part. There was lots of love and encouragement in the air and competitor Ian Tennant mentioned that the atmosphere is more of a big team coming together to celebrate a shared interest of massage rather than the tension you might expect at a competition! 

Many of the judges also reported that they were seriously impressed this year that more therapists were focusing on demonstrating their connection to their client. Delivering tailored treatments with caring intentions rather than relying on showboating dramatic techniques. The judges were thrilled to see competitors take on the mission of elevating our industry on such a public stage and the public seemed to absorb this message, being seriously impressed with the skills on show. 

Why should you compete next year?

In addition to trophies and exclusive prizes from leading massage therapy taking part in this competition offers winners admiration and good publicity for their massage therapy businesses. Even taking part you will be demonstrating to your clients that you take your profession seriously and that you are taking opportunities to test yourself and learn new skills. 

We often don't get a chance working as independent massage therapists to test ourselves. As judge Bhavesh T. Joshi put it to us "you will never know how good you are unless you compete". The National Massage Championships are a great way to receive feedback from some of our industry's greatest leaders with each competitor receiving a copy of the judge's notes on their performance after the competition. Competitor Georgia Curry told us this was one of her main reasons for wanting to compete, pointing out that this kind of feedback is priceless! 

How can you sign up?

Next year the competition will be held on the Sunday 4th and Monday 5th of October. Registration will open shortly and we will continue to share highlights from this year's competition so please keep your eyes peeled on this post and on our social media channels for more exclusive interviews and details on how to get involved next year!  

We would love to hear your thoughts on what events like the National Massage Championships bring to our industry! Please let us know on our Facebook thread!