Photo credit: Asahi Kasei
Retired since the end of 2022, Shohei Ono, the living legend of Japanese judo for the last fifteen years, was in Paris for the Olympic Games. In a new role for him: that of commentator for the Japanese consortium – including the public channel NHK – which acquired the television rights to the Paris Olympics. Alongside Takamasa Anai – the head coach of the Tenri team – and Aiko Sato, 2011 world champion in -57kg, the double Olympic champion in -73kg split a series of tweets at the end of the judo event in order to give his own assessment of this event. As he had done during the interview he gave us after his second success in Tokyo three years ago, the genius of Tenri, in a very Japanese phraseology made of understatements, gave a very clear opinion between the lines. Let us quote him: ” Judo has become internationalized and various martial arts techniques have been introduced. All judokas should spend more time grabbing each other, trying to throw techniques, aiming for ippon, and embodying a judo that is easy for everyone to understand. […] Before the Tokyo Olympics, I remember Sensei Isao Okano told us to do judo in a way that would make it clear which side won. That’s why I want to teach it in a way that kids can watch and think it’s cool and want to do it. »
An analysis that expresses, in its own way, what we had developed in the article entitled “What arbitration for Paris 2024?” of our issue n°106, namely that judo has now become a discipline of penalization rather than valorization. An observation made as much by enthusiasts and practitioners, as by laymen, spectators of our discipline every four years.
A bitter assessment that joins the procession of those expressed on social networks, both in France and in other countries during these eight days.
Shohei Ono who also congratulated Teddy Riner and the French Team: ” The French hero, Teddy Riner, is very strong. I did some randori with him but I would have also liked to face him in an official fight. Congratulations to the French team for their second consecutive victory. »
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JO Paris 2024Shohei Ono
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2024-08-06 20:57:06
#Shohei #Ono #advocates #return #essence #judo
