After receiving her bachelor’s degree in physical and health education from Nippon University of Physical Education in Tokyo, Kuniko Takeuchi began teaching judo and physical education in the early 1960s. Later, her career as a judo and P.E. instructor led her abroad, and eventually to the Okubo Judo Club in Sacramento, Calif., where she currently […]
Famed judo coach Yosh Uchida to celebrate 100th birthday
March 28, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Yoshihiro Uchida, the legendary coach who helped make San Jose State University a collegiate powerhouse in judo for decades, will celebrate his 100th birthday on April 1. He had hoped to visit Japan later this year for the Tokyo Olympics, but those plans are uncertain because of the global coronavirus pandemic. Uchida was born in […]
Japanese American judo legend to visit Japan for 2nd Tokyo Olympics at age 100
October 26, 2017 by Leave a Comment
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A second-generation Japanese American man who coaches judo in California is hoping to return to Japan for his second Tokyo Olympics in 2020 when he will be 100 years old. Yoshihiro Uchida, who took part in the 1964 Games in Tokyo as coach of the U.S. judo team, still trains judoka […]
Judo legend Keiko Fukuda, 99, passes away
February 21, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The world’s highest-ranking female judo master, Keiko Fukuda, passed away in her home in San Francisco on Feb. 16. She was 99. Fukuda was the last living student of Jigoro Kano, the founder of judo, and ranked 10th-dan by U.S.A. Judo and the U.S. Judo Federation and ninth-dan by the Japanese Kodokan (the headquarters for […]
Uchida inducted into SJ State Sports Hall of Fame
November 15, 2012 by Leave a Comment
CAMPBELL, Calif. — San Jose State University honored judo coach Yoshihiro Uchida Oct. 26 at Villa Ragusa in downtown Campbell, Calif., naming him to the San Jose State Sports Hall of Fame’s Legend category, its highest level. The university inducted two of its “best football teams” in the school’s history, “six outstanding athletes, one legendary […]
San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival preview
February 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Celebrating 30 years of Asian American film, the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival will kick off on Thursday, March 8 and run through Sunday, March 18. The festival, presented by the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), will screen approximately 120 films in 12 theaters located throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The […]
Two-time Olympic judo champion Uchishiba arrested on suspicion of rape
December 8, 2011 by 1 Comment
TOKYO (Kyodo) — Two-time Olympic judo champion Masato Uchishiba was arrested Dec. 6 on suspicion of raping a female member of the judo team of the university where he had served as a coach. Uchishiba, 33, allegedly raped the teenage woman at a Tokyo hotel in late September while she was falling asleep after drinking […]
Judo master, 98, is of healthy mind and spirit
October 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Keiko Fukuda, at the age of 98, continues to practice judo, an art she has honed for more than 70 years. While she is often confined to a wheelchair, following a health checkup in May, her doctor described her as healthy as can be. According to her friend and caregiver, Shelley Fernandez, Fukuda has survived […]
NJAHS honors those who made ‘transformative’ contributions
April 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment
The National Japanese American Historical Society’s (NJAHS) mission statement has changed since it began in 1981. In celebrating its 30th anniversary, NJAHS honored both the people it says have transformed the Japanese American cultural landscape, as well as the transformations the organization itself has experienced during the last three decades. NJAHS originated with a mission […]
STRONG, GENTLE AND BEAUTIFUL: Judo master Keiko Fukuda’s legacy
April 5, 2011 by Leave a Comment
2011 Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival Co-Grand Marshal Keiko Fukuda photo courtesy of Yuriko Gamo Romer Despite being the highest ranking female judo master in the world, Keiko Fukuda is relentlessly modest. This year, at age 98, she was honored at the National Japanese American Historical Society awards dinner, and has been selected as […]
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