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Judo means "the
gentle way" in Japanese. Of course, it is derived in part
from jujitsu, the hand-to-hand combat technique of ancient
samurai warriors, and everything is relative. While throwing
opponents to the floor wins most matches, it is the only
Olympic sport where submission holds allow choking an
opponent or breaking an arm.
Developed by
Dr Jigoro Kano in the 1880s, the sport broke into the
Olympic Games in 1964 at Tokyo. The host country could add
one sport, and Japan chose judo. Four weight classes were
established, and Japanese entries promptly won three.
However, in
the fourth, the open class, a 1.98-metre Dutchman named
Anton Geesink defeated three-time Japanese national champion
Kaminaga Akio before 15,000 people at Nippon Budokan Hall.
And then he beat him again. It followed victories earlier in
the year over other top Japanese opponents, deeply bruising
the theory that a skilled judoka could defeat any opponent
of any size.
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