We Are Tomodachi Japan and Russia Edition 2017

12/20

12Series: Japanese Individuals Contributing WorldwideWhen naming the top judo masters, Yasuhiro Yamashita remains one of the names that come to mind even today. Since his retirement, he has been committing himself to activities aimed at promoting international exchange through judo as he trains younger judoists.Yamashita recalls, “When I was a student of Tokai University, Dr. Shigeyoshi Matsumae, founder of the university and my teacher, was a constant advocate of international exchange and goodwill relations. Even in the midst of the Cold War in the 1970s, top athletes from all over the world, including what was the Soviet Union at the time, gathered at Tokai University where we trained together as one. Being in that environment, I was greatly influenced by the teachings of Matsumae Sensei, and began to walk my path as a judoist.”When Shigeyoshi Matsumae passed away in 1991, he left Yamashita with the following wish: “Be somebody that can contribute to world peace through sports.”“I was only in my 30s at the time, so I felt this expectation for me was unreasonably high,” says Yamashita. “But as I carried those words of my mentor in my heart, I met more people who had the same goal, and the doors to international exchange opened one after another.”Yamashita established the NPO “Solidarity of International Judo Education” in 2006 for the purpose of using judo as a means to deepen the understanding of other cultures and to create friendships that extend beyond borders. He would go anywhere in the world to Olympic Gold Medalist Promotes International Exchange through JudoYasuhiro YamashitaJudoist and president of the All Japan Judo Federation. Senior executive board member of the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC). Vice chancellor of Tokai University. Gold medal winner in the open-weight category of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, winner of three successive World Judo Championships, and nine-time consecutive winner of the All Japan Judo Championships. Presented with the People’s Honor Award in 1984.