THERE won’t too many diners bold enough to complain about a fly in their soup whenever Valentino Volante is serving them. The 18 year-old, known as Tino, weighs more than 16 stone, most of it in muscle. He is also one of Scotland’s brightest judo prospects and will form part of a large home contingent competing at this weekend’s European Open at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, his first senior international event.

Judo is Edinburgh-based Volante’s life since he left school last year but it does not pay him a living. He is partly-funded by the Scottish Institute of Sport and Judo Scotland, which allows him to compete all over the world, but he earns his spending money by working part-time as a waiter, as well as by helping out his dad with various heavy-duty tasks.

“People always ask if you’re professional but it’s more full-time than professional,” he said. “I don’t get paid to do judo, although I’m partly funded so that helps pay for trips and the like. But it isn’t money to live off which is why I’ve got a couple of part-time jobs as well. I do a bit of work as a waiter in a restaurant and also help my dad as well. It’s a lot of manual labour which I’m good at, as you can imagine.”

If Volante’s part-time work doesn’t sound particularly exerting, then it should be remembered they come on top of six days full-on judo training every week as he prepares to make the step up from junior to senior competition. Having taken up judo at the age of three, he already has his sights set on competing in the 2022 Commonwealth Games and before that the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

“I always trained pretty regularly from about 14 years old, usually four days a week,” he added. “So judo has always been quite full-on for me. But since I left school last year and went full-time it has gone up another level. At the start I found it quite hard as I was feeling tired all the time but, like anything, you gradually get used to it. Now I’m training five or six days a week and that’s no problem.

“Next year is my last year as a junior so I’ll be looking to make the team for the Europeans and maybe the worlds, too. The end goal, though, has always been the seniors. In Britain the track record isn’t great of juniors who have stepped up and then kicked on in their careers. So my training and my lifestyle just now is already with my senior career in my mind as I want to do the best I can when I move up.

“Unfortunately judo isn’t in the next Commonwealth Games [on Australia’s Gold Coast in 2018] which is a bit gutting. So my first Games will be 2022 [in Durban, South Africa] and I’ll be looking to make that team. And before that there is the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. With Japan being the home of judo, it would be even more special to compete in that one.”

Picking on someone his own size isn’t easy for Volante. “That’s always been the problem for me,” he added. “I’m the only junior in Scotland who is over 100kg and there are only a few in Britain. So when you’re a heavyweight there are few partners for your category. You can get 90kg or under 100kg players but none that match you. But there are a good few seniors at 90kg and that age difference almost balances things out on the mat. So there are always ways around it.”

One regular training partner was Matt Purssey, the Commonwealth Games silver medallist who, until recently, also doubled as Volante’s coach. “He’s been a massive influence in my career,” said the teenager. “He started coaching me in January of last year and from the off we just got on great. The amount of hours he was doing with me was ridiculous. But I was helping him, too, with his preparation for the Commonwealth Games where he went on to win a silver medal. So I was really lucky to get to work with him. He was a role model for me.”

Volante, whose grandparents are Italian, also credits much of his career success to the sacrifices made over the years by his dad, also Valentino. “He’s been at practically every competition I’ve fought in over the years, he’s been abroad with me, driven me to England – he’s been a massive help. He’s always by my side, always offering to come and watch me training. He loves seeing me doing what I love doing.

“He was never a judoka himself but his best friend did judo and that was how I got into it. He took me along when I was younger and I loved it.”

Volante is looking forward to appearing this weekend at the Emirates but, with Olympic qualifying points available for some, is not putting too much pressure on himself in such a stellar field. “It will be the biggest arena I’ve competed in and the biggest crowd I’ve competed in front of so that’s exciting. And the fact it’s a home crowd makes it a bit more special, too. I was meant to fight in the British Open this year but got injured and missed out. So this is my first senior international. I’m just looking to fight my best and see how I get on.”