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Hidehiko Yoshida (47 years old) stars for Park 24 and leads team to All-Japan team championship!!

June 3, 2017 By judo fan 2 Comments

https://youtu.be/Uqyij0MHCos?t=7m5s

No, it’s not a joke, Hidehiko Yoshida, gold medalist at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics is still at it, this time leading his Park 24 trade team to victory in the All-Japan Businessmen’s Team Final against the railway company, JR Kyushu. He did so with one of the most DEVASTATING osoto garis imaginable! It’s hard to imagine that the man is 47 years old! Though visibly slower, the power he generated is absolutely amazing. His star-studded Park 24 team included world champion Masashi Ebinuma, jr. world champion Sho Tateyama, national team member Yuki Hashiguchi and last year’s All-Japan Championships bronze medalist at -73kg, Kazuya Tamura.

Before going any further, most outside of Japan are probably unfamiliar with the semi-professional trade team league in Japan (visit this blog entry for additional information). Inside of Japan it is the top judo league, and the majority of the olympic athletes belong to one of these club teams, which are sponsored by many of the largest corporations in Japan. The athletes train for most of the day and work for the company as well. Only the German Bundesliga and maybe some of the club teams around Europe come close to matching the quality of judoka that these teams have.

In most trade team tournaments (実業団柔道大会), the companies are divided into 3 divisions, with the 1st division being reserved for the top teams around Japan. The second division occasionally features olympians and national team members but the teams as a whole lack the depth of the first division teams, and the 3rd division is usually reserved for lightweight athletes, semi-retired athletes and other teams that are not quite at the elite level. However, even in the 3rd division, the later rounds are packed with excellent judoka.

Today’s tournament featured the men’s third division and the women’s first division, which was won by Komatsu, the team of judo legend Ayumi Tanimoto. The Komatsu team was led by former world champion, Nae Udaka, who also went home with the tournament’s MVP award, which she won jointly with fellow national team members, Yoko Ono (Komatsu) and former national team member Terumi Kaneko of the Japan Self Defense Force Physical Training School. Former olympian Miku Tashiro (Komatsu) also made her return to competition after a long layoff due to injury and the Komatsu team easily defeated the JSDF Physical Training School in the finals.

https://youtu.be/6o-LyCFhemo

Tomorrow, the men’s 1st and 2nd divisions and the women’s 2nd division will compete in what is probably the most competitive team championship in the world. Judofan will keep you updated on tomorrows tournament as well, so please check in again tomorrow!

News Shorts: Hashimoto to aim for All-Japan Open Weight next year, Wolf injured but should recover in time for world championships

May 17, 2017 By judo fan Leave a Comment

In an interview conducted just prior to departing for the 2017 Ekaterinburg Grand Slam, world #2 ranked Soichi Hashimoto (-73kg) told reporters that one of his hopes for next year would be to compete in the All-Japan Open Weight Championships next April. Spurred on by his Japanese rival, Shohei Ono, who competed in the open weight tournament last month, Hashimoto said that he hopes a win at this summer’s world championships would earn him a spot in the coveted tournament next year (source). If he should fulfill his dream, this would be good for all parties involved as open weight matches are becoming more and more scarce these days, especially at the elite level. His selection of techniques are quite different from that of his rival Ono, and may prove more suitable against larger opponents. One will never know until he steps onto the mat, so here’s to hoping his wish comes true!

Shortly after writing this blog entry, Ryuju Nagayama also announced he would like to earn a spot in next year’s contest as a -60kg entry! Guess nobody is going to let Ono show them up. While I commend Nagayama’s enthusiasm, I would rather see these athletes qualify through the normal qualification channels than request a special entrance for their success in the prospective categories. Either way, should the trend continue, we will certainly be entertained with some unusual matchups.

In other news, Aaron Wolf is out of this weekend’s Ekaterinburg Grand Slam due to an injury sustained to his right chest area. However, his participation in this summer’s world championships is not in jeopardy according to Japanese national team head coach, Kosei Inoue. His withdrawal is more of a preventative measure as Wolf has apparently competed through the pain and is experiencing fatigue. That is good news, and we hope that Wolf will be at %100 for his debut in a world championships.

*Editor’s note: The photo in this entry was taken by Klaus Mueller who owns the rights to this photo. Mr. Mueller, if you would like this photograph to be taken down, please let us know and we will do so promptly. Thank you for your wonderful photos.

Japanese National Team roster updated, no major changes

May 13, 2017 By judo fan 6 Comments

Ryuju Nagashima, Japan’s new -60kg champion

As per usual at this time of the year, the Japanese National team roster went through a reshuffling at the conclusion of the All-Japan Open Weight Championships on April 29th (for full roster in Japanese, click here). Changes usually occur in April and then again in November at the conclusion of the Kodokan Cup. The junior national team roster also gets re-evaluated in August, at the conclusion of the All-Japan High School Championships.

Unlike the women’s side, which saw a near complete overhaul of their A-team roster, the men’s side had no major changes, with the coaching staff not cutting many athletes from the roster, and instead, nominating 2 athletes to the “A” roster in most categories. Athletes who have been nominated to the A team for the first time include Hifumi Abe (-66), who replaces Masashi Ebinuma as Japan’s top player in the category. A word of note to anyone who has griped about being promoted too slowly, Abe is the only player on the senior national team who holds the rank of 1st degree black belt (shodan). Ryuju Nagashima, the prodigy from Tokai University, will join his former teammate Naohisa Takato as co-leaders of the -60 division. Aaron Wolf, and Soichiro Hashimoto also earned spots on the A-team for the first time in their careers. Wolf joins Ryunosuke Haga at -100, and Hashimoto joins Shohei Ono at -73.

Though Japan has quite a lot of depth in each category, the -100kg category has a particularly small pool of athletes on the roster, with only 5 on the senior national team. That is less than half of the size of the -60, and-66 rosters, which have 11 athletes in each. Matthew Baker, who despite being injured, retained his spot as Japan’s top -90kg player. Though strong, the -90kg division has a fair amount of athletes nearing the end of their careers, without a huge amount of depth amongst the younger players. Daiki Nishiyama, Yuya Yoshida and Hirotaka Kato have all represented Japan for over a decade now.

In the +100kg category, Japan has opted to focus on their youth, with 5 of the 9 senior national team members coming from universities. Ryu Shichinohe and Daiki Kamikawa are the only 2 athletes on the B-team who are competing for trade teams at the moment. The +100kg category looks to be quite healthy, with Kokoro Kageura of Tokai university and Yusei Ogawa of Meiji leading the group. Hisayoshi Harasawa and Takeshi Ojitani, both soon to turn 25 this summer will have a hard time retaining their top spots in the run-up to the olympics in 2020.

This is one of the best judo teams Japan has put forth in a long time, in my opinion. There are really no weak categories, though the -100 and -90 categories seem to lack a bit of depth. From lightweight to middleweight, I really believe that we will see 2 athletes in each category on the podium at the next world championships in Budapest. They are all THAT good. Though I don’t think that the Japanese heavyweights can challenge France’s Teddy Riner at the moment, domestically, it is a very competitive and interesting division. There is no dominant athlete, but in this case, I believe it is more of an indication that the division has a lot of overall depth, rather than a lack depth.

Finally, though slightly unrelated, I will leave you with a short video of one of the top Japanese athletes in the cadet category. At only 16 years of age, Sanshiro Murao already looks to be one of the best -90kg players in Japan, regardless of age. Coached by former olympian, Masahiro Takamatsu at Toin High School, Murao has a style similar to Hiroshi Izumi, where his uncanny balance allows him to switch directions like no one else. Enjoy him leading his team to the overall victory in last March’s All-Japan High School Championships, where he won 3 in a row before losing to his +100kg teammate on the national team, Naoki Tobe of Taisei High School.

2017 All-Japan Open Weight Championships recap and thoughts on final world championship team

April 29, 2017 By judo fan Leave a Comment

2017 All Japan final. Aaron Wolf (l) vs Takeshi Ojitani (r)

The 2017 All-Japan Open Weight Championships are now in the books, with Takeshi Ojitani emerging as the winner, successfully defending his title. In doing so, he became one of only 8 players to have won the tournament 3 or more times (Kosei Inoue and Shinichi Shinohara both tied at 3). It was a well-deserved win in a tournament that was not lacking in drama, all the way to the end, where he beat Aaron Wolf by shido 2:20 into golden score after a testy affair that left both athletes bloody and bruised (**Ojitani tweeted that he couldn’t eat after the tournament because his lip is split open. That must be the worst! I would be starving after a tournament like that.)

Before going to bed, here are some parting thoughts about the tournament:

The rules were confusing! The AJJF and Kodokan decided that this tournament would utilize the new rule changes, while keeping the old scoring system, meaning that the yuko would still be in effect. Additionally, golden score was introduced for the first time in the history of the event. I wish they would have gone all in with either the new rules or the old rules, but the mix was a bit annoying.

For the first time in 69 years, female referees make their debut! Seriously?!?! It is 2017 and we are celebrating the first female referees (there were three this time) to officiate this tournament? While it is a step forward, one has to be a little shocked at how it could possibly have taken so long! AJJF, Kodokan, are you guys serious?!

A lightweight won’t win this tournament anytime soon. As predicted, Shohei Ono did not manage a win here today, proving the difficulty of being outweighed in modern judo. With the new rules and the introduction of golden score, I would bet my house that we will never see a sub 80kg player winning this tournament ever again. The rules make it next to impossible for a lighter athlete to compete with the heavyweights. Without leg grabs, double-hand grip breaks, only 3 shidos and an endless time limit, one of the great spectacles in judo (the smaller athlete beating up on the bigger athlete) seems to be a thing of the past.

Masaru Momose had the retirement tournament one can only dream of. If you followed my tweets during the tournament, you may recall that I mentioned this will probably be Masaru Momose’s final tournament (*I incorrectly called him Hikaru Momose in the tweeting. Forgot his name! Doh!). Before going out though, he made sure to beat the reigning Olympic silver medalist Hisayoshi Hirasawa in the process! The former junior worlds silver medalist has always been near the top of the heavyweight category, and was always a podium threat. The last years of his career saw him competing mostly for his trade team, Asahi Kasei where he was a consistent, steady member in team tournaments. He had not posted many noteworthy individual results over the past few years. Nonetheless, he must be thrilled to have beaten arguably Japan’s best judo player at the moment before finally hanging up his gi.

Daiki Kamikawa runs out of gas again. Prior to the tournament, one of the more talked about athletes was Daiki Kamikawa, who shed 20kg in less than 6 months, as he tried to regain his place as Japan’s top heavyweight. It was somewhat startling news given that I rode an elevator with him up to the Kodokan 7th floor last year, and he had a bag full of potato chips, candy and coke. I laughed at the time thinking, “I guess you don’t have to subject yourself to a life of chicken breasts and broccoli to be the best.” The consummate underachiever, Kamikawa ran out of gas in the final last year, and ran out of gas again this year, losing to Aaron Wolf in the quarterfinals by hansoku-make. I believe his days on the national team are over. We will find out soon, when Kosei Inoue announces the new national team. I will sure miss seeing him in competition. I still believe he is the most technically sound heavyweight in Japan at the moment.

Ryu Shichinohe is following in the footsteps of Yasuyuki Muneta. Like the former double world champion, Yasuyuki Muneta, Shichinohe is proving that he competes much better internationally than he does domestically. Though a third place finish here isn’t half bad, judging from his international results, one would think he would have been able to win this tournament at least once by now. Now come the tough decisions for Shichinohe. At 28 years of age, he has said he will keep his olympic dream alive until the 2020 games in Tokyo, but that goal seems to be slowly slipping away.

Hirotaka Kato is the best strategist in judo. The oldest member of Japan’s national team, Hirotaka Kato reminded us of the class he possesses. The 2012 champion threw Aaron Wolf in the semi-finals for a yuko, only to be penalized with 15 seconds left in the match, resulting in a hansoku-make. Though visibly slower than he was in his prime, the unorthodox Kato should serve as an inspiration to all judoka at the tail end of their careers. He shows that good newaza and savvy tactics can win a heck of a lot of matches despite physical limitations.

Where were the police?!?! The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, one of the greatest judo clubs in the history of judo failed to place any of their members into the tournament. With the exception of Hirotaka Kato, who competes for the Chiba Prefectural Police Department, the police had a lackluster showing at this tournament.

The youngsters still have a lot of growing up to do. The only university student to make it to the quarterfinals was Aaron Wolf. Everyone else went out fairly quickly. In years past, it seems there were a lot more university students who factored into the final rounds. Yusei Ogawa, Daigo Kagawa, Yuki Isshiki and Sosuke Matsumura all lost to experienced veterans, and were more or less out gamed in each. All four have a very bright future ahead though.

The final worlds team has been announced. Harasawa still going despite loss. Ryunosuke Haga and Hisayoshi Harasawa were added to the world championship team roster, with the -90 category left vacant in the absence of the injured Mashu Baker. This is about as good a team as Japan could possibly muster, and I think they have a good shot to win in every category they are contesting except for the +100kg category. In my opinion, Teddy Riner is still the best pound-for-pound judoka in the world and neither Harasawa nor Ojitani will be able to challenge him at the moment.

Some final words. I want to just take a moment to say a huge thank you to the people who have helped me and supported me as I’ve built this blog up. Lance Wicks over at Planet Judo, and Dave Roman at the Judo Chop Suey podcast have helped promote my blog and their efforts have really driven a lot of traffic here. It has been a real pleasure meeting and getting feedback from people around the world. Thanks for all of the e-mails and questions. It makes doing this all worth it.