last update 4 mei 2005
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Jigoro Kano
The founder of judo
Jigoro Kano was born on Octorber 28, 1860 in Mikage, near the coastal city of Kobe. He was the third son of Jerosaku Kano, a merchant in shipping materials. He and his family moved to Tokyo in 1871. At the age of seventeen Kano studied philosophy, economy and political sciences at the imperial university. He eventually received a PhD in philosophy and became a teacher.

Kano was of small stature and barely weighed 106 pounds. Because of his small size he was an easy target for the school's bullies. However, Kano was not going to accept this willingly. He had heard that Jiu Jitsu enabled a weaker man to beat a stronger opponent. Teinosuke Yagi, a friend of the Kano family, was an old Jiu Jitsu master. He taught Kano the basics of Jiu Jitsu at the age of eighteen. Later he was taught by Hachinosuke Fukuda and Masatomo Iso of the tenshin-shin'yo ruy (ryu = school) and Tsunetoshi Iikubo of the kito ryu.

After studying the literature on the various Jiu Jitsu ryu and on physical education Kano developed his own system. In 1882 he opened his school, the Kodokan, where he taught Kodokan judo. The difference with Jiu Jitsu is already evident in the name: 'Jiu' loosely translates as 'soft' or 'compliant' and 'Jitsu' is 'art'. Kano dubbed his system as 'judo', 'the soft way'. He wanted to emphasise that his vision on the martial arts was not just an art-form but a way of life. A choice to walk a specific path in your life.

Kano's judo philosophy is expressed in the principle of 'seiryoku-zen'yo' (best use of energy). The intention is to use a minimum of effort to accomplish a maximal result. The principle can be seen in the techniques of judo. Instead of countering or blocking an attack a judoka will use the energy and movement of the opponent by going along with the movement, enhancing the direction of the movement (e.g. by pulling) and finally flooring the opponent with a throw.

Kano's school reached a student body of 119,000 including 85,000 black belts. Judo became an Olympic sport where many Dutch judoka won medals. Especially Anton Geesink and Wim Ruska's gold medals in the sixties of the last century have put the Netherlands on the map as a judo country.

Kano died of a pneumonia on the steamship Hikawa-Maru on May 4, 1948.

Written and translated by Dennis de Booij.