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!
Have you stopped your work on the blog? The posts are so insightful and I really hope you’ll carry on
Thank you for your kind words.
Unfortunately, my work has not allowed me much extra time to make blog posts.
However, I have a new team at a new university with one national team member, so I hope to start documenting my experiences sometime this year.
Thank you for reading.