A bronze statue of Jigoro Kano (see below), the founder of judo, will be erected this month in Taito Ward, Tokyo -- the birthplace of the sport.
Practitioners of judo welcome the move to honor the founding father in a ward that is full of popular sightseeing spots that attract flocks of tourists, such as the Asakusa district.
"With the Tokyo Olympics approaching, we can get the word out on the origin of judo and Kano's achievements," said one person engaged in the sport.
Judo is now a popular sport worldwide. Its origin goes back to 1882 when Kano (1860-1938) opened a private school named Kodokan Judo Institute in Eishoji temple in the ward after graduating from Tokyo Imperial University.
Kano, who was prone to illness as a child, learned the time-honored martial art of jujutsu during his student days and gradually built a strong physique.
His own experience and desire to help more people improve their physical and mental health prompted Kano to found judo. The martial art incorporated aspects of jujutsu but eliminated its more dangerous techniques. Kano lived on the premises of the temple and trained with nine disciples at Kodokan, which became the epicenter for a growing new sport.
With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games drawing near, Taito Ward has decided to erect the statue of Kano on the premises of the ward office, about 200 meters from the temple.
"Judo is gaining more attention nowadays, so we want to build something to prove that this is the birthplace of the sport and promote it at home and abroad," a ward official said.
The statue, scheduled to be installed in mid-February, is based on an original mold created by the sculptor Fumio Asakura (1883-1964), who is known as the Rodin of the East.
The new 214-centimeter-tall statue will join four other identical statues of Kano that stand at various locations, including the current Kodokan building in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo.
"The ward office and Eishoji temple are located close to the Asakusa district. I want people from around the world to tour these places to remember Kano, the father of judo," said Kodokan President Haruki Uemura, 67.
"There used to be more than 10 dojo [training facilities] for judo in the ward when I was a child, but now there's only one," said Susumu Kawada, administrative director of the Taito Ward group of the Judo Federation of Tokyo.
"I'd like more children to learn that judo originated in Taito Ward and start practicing the sport," the 74-year-old said.
-- Jigoro Kano
Kano was born in present-day Kobe in 1860. He served as the first president of the Japan Amateur Athletic Association (now the Japan Sport Association) and the first Asian member of the International Olympic Committee, earning him the nickname "the father of physical education in Japan." He died of pneumonia in 1938 while on a ship returning from an IOC general meeting. In the current NHK yearlong period drama "Idaten," Kano appears as a mentor of one of the lead characters, Shiso Kanakuri.
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