98 Year Old Judoka

Thanks for sharing. I’m always impressed by elder people who have transcended to the other side of martial arts. I’m a little peeved at the number of comments saying how she’s a joke, the ranking system is stupid, she would be terrible at combatives, how has she improved since her 9th dan etc. etc.

I mean, I’m pretty sure Helio Gracie wasn’t exactly tearing up the vale tudo circuit in his 90’s, but I certainly wouldn’t make fun of him.

When I did judo as a teenager, there was a 6th dan that I think was in his mid to late 70’s who was on the mat within three months of when he died. I’ve always thought that was really badass.

[quote]XiaoNio wrote:
how has she improved since her 9th dan etc. etc.[/quote]
As I recall, ranks above 5th dan are given more for contributions to judo (coaching, proliferation of judo, etc) than competing/skill.

[quote]Clandestine wrote:
As I recall, ranks above 5th dan are given more for contributions to judo (coaching, proliferation of judo, etc) than competing/skill.[/quote]

I’ve spoken to several Judokas here in Japan that tell me this is the case.

The ju-dan (10th degree) is basically a retirement gift and a lifetime achievement award all wrapped into one. These are typically awarded when the practitioner is nearing the end of their life…