Judo Articles

Judo means the "gentle way" and it is a modern Japanese martial art and combat sport. Judo originated in Japan in the late nineteenth century. The object of judo is to either throw one's opponent to the ground, to immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or to force an opponent to submit by joint locking the elbow or by executing a choke. Strikes and thrusts, either by hands and feet or by weapons, are a part of judo, but only in pre-arranged forms called kata and are not allowed in judo competition or randori, free practice of the art.

A List of Japanese Kodokan Judo 10th Dan Holders
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By Jonathan Kruger (Read Biography)
I would like to share some of my early experiences of judo and jujitsu in Osaka Japan.  When I left for Japan in 1991 at the age of 19, I had been doing judo for 4 years, first under my father, Sensei John Kruger and then under Father Jude McKenna in Lusaka, as well as Sensei  Hiromitsu Umino who worked for the JOCV organization, (Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers). (Read Article)

By Terry Wilson - To Bruno Dela Pozza, judo is literally music to his ears.  This 69-year-old composer orchestrates his throws the same way he puts notes on a chart. “Judo is like music,” explains Dela Pozza.  “When I throw someone it’s like playing music.  For example, when I begin to randori, I guide my opponent much in the same manner I would play a tune on the piano.  Music, like judo is a sequence of  rhythms that change as the song or contest goes along.   It begins easy, with a nice melody, then I change my timing and the music becomes faster.  That’s how I enter for a throw. Fast. Then, as I execute the throw, my music is more dramatic and to the point.  When my opponent hits the mat, the concert is over.” (Read Article)

By Terry Wilson - Long before the Ultimate Fighting Championships made the Gracies a household name in the world of grappling, there was a contest that pitted a nationally ranked heavyweight boxer against a world-class judo player. The boxer was third-ranked Milo Savage and the judo champion was Gene LeBell. The Cahllenge came in 1962 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Read Article)

By Rebecca Barnett Published in The Masters, Judo for Adults - We all have our heroes in judo, men we hold in awe. George Harris is one of my heroes. Mr. Harris was on the first judo Olympic Team in 1964. He was a gold medallist in the Pan American Games (precursor to the World Championships) in 1960 and 1963. George Harris was a four time National Champion and six times Air Force Champion. Our two-part interview on judo and honor took place in 2000. (Read Article)

By Terry Wilson - Judo and wrestling legend Gene LeBell has hooked horns with the best in the game and in the process has earned the moniker as “The Toughest Man Alive,” by his peers.  One of those to sing the phrases of “Judo” Gene was Bruce Lee. In addition to his years of training and teaching martial arts, Gene is also one of Hollywood’s top stunt men.  In fact, it’s almost impossible to watch an action film without seeing Gene firing a machine gun, getting tossed out of a window or taking a fall for one of the super stars of the silver screen. (Read Article)

By Professor Rick Clark
This sub-category of grappling techniques deserves a great deal of attention.  Choke holds are an efficient way to restrain your opponent, and could offer a useful addition to a martial artist’s repertoire of self-defense techniques. (Read Article)

Kathleen Sullivan, Chronicle Staff Writer Friday, October 17, 2003 - An elderly woman sits in the only chair allowed on the light green carpet of padded mats in the judo club. It's just a metal folding chair, but her students treat her like a queen on a throne. They hang on every soft-spoken word, every wave of a hand, every approving nod or smile. She is dressed in brilliant white: a quilted jacket with overlapping lapels over thin white pants with reinforced knees. It is her cherry-red belt, knotted loosely over her jacket, that marks her as sovereign. (Read Article)

By Jason Struck - I have seen more than one article on the web, heralding the Squat as the best exercise for a judoka. While I can’t argue that the squat is a great exercise, I think that a trainee with just a little bit of experience in the gym can do better. (Read Article)

By W. Stopps - It has been my privilege and honour to have known Mr. Otani for the past thirty years. What can I say about such a man? Reflecting back over the years I well remember my first encounter with him, I was seventeen then, interested in wrestling and gymnastics when I heard of a man who taught “ju-jutsu” over a stable in Harlesden, London. (Read Article)

By D. Risei Kano - THE MISSION OF KODOKAN JUDO ?The spiritual aspect of judo is rarely discussed in daily conversation among judo students. Students prefer to discuss how they or their competitor won a particular match or judo tournament. Judo is more than how an opponent or a method of self defense, it encompasses the hidden spiritual discipline with each person. (Read Article)

By Prof. Jigoro Kano, Interpreted by Yukio Matsumoto - What is widely prevailed all over the world now under the general name of judo means the Kodokan Judo which Prof Jigoro Kano founded in the 15th year of the Meiji era (1882) as a means of realizing his new ideal by systematizing the theory and techniques of the traditional jujutsu of various schools.
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Written by: Kousuke Nagaki - Under bujitsu, it is basic criterion to question actual fighting performance capabilities as equal to its ability. The goal of this article is to clarify the birth of different jiujitsu discipline and its branching out as well as to clarify the path to unification of such disciplines under the efforts of the Kodokan and explain the principle of free competition under the merit system as well as to further contemplate the reasons and meanings of Jiyuradori (Randori).
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by Donn F. Draeger - Kata? Not in this dojo. We only do fight’n Judo here. It’s bad enough you have to learn some of it just before ya’ wanna pass your Dan exam; but after that . . . forget it! The intent and meaning of these and similar opinions about kata have rung out in scores of dojos throughout the country. Unfortunately, it has been relatively easy for a novice judoka to overhear such opinions; and it is still easier for the novice to condition his training by the blind acceptance of such poor advice. (Read Article)