Masao Takahashi (June 24, 1929 – February 14, 2020) was a Canadian

judoka is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

, author, coach, and founder of the Takahashi School of Martial Arts (Est. 1969) in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Ontario. He was involved in

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...

for more than 70 years, and was ranked ''hachi-dan'' (eighth-degree black belt), making him one of the highest ranked Canadian judoka. In 2002 he was decorated by the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his positio ...

with the

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest ...

, Gold Rays with Rosette, in recognition of his service to improving the status of

Japanese Canadians are Canadian citizens of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Canadians are mostly concentrated in Western Canada, especially in the province of British Columbia, which hosts the largest Japanese community in the country with the majority of them living ...

through his lifelong commitment to the promotion and development of Judo in Canada. He was inducted into the Judo Canada Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2005 Takahashi co-authored a book, ''Mastering Judo'', with his family.

Biography

Born in

Stave Falls, British Columbia Stave Falls is a rural community located in northwestern Mission, British Columbia, Canada. See also *Stave Lake *Rolley Lake Provincial Park *Stave Falls Dam Stave Falls Dam is a dual-dam power complex on the Stave River in Stave Falls, Britis ...

, Takahashi moved to the

Kitsilano Kitsilano () is a neighbourhood located in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Kitsilano is named after Squamish chief August Jack Khatsahlano, and the neighbourhood is located in Vancouver's West Side along the south shore of Engli ...

neighbourhood of

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

with his family in the late 1930s, where his father worked in a saw mill and his mother opened a day care centre. He was an outstanding athlete in high school, but his activities were limited following the outbreak of the Second World War. In March 1942, the government forced the family to give up their belongings and relocate as part of the

internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

of Japanese-Canadians due to fears that they would act against Canada on behalf of Japan. The Takahashis were moved to

Raymond, Alberta Raymond is a town in southern Alberta, Canada that is surrounded by the County of Warner No. 5. It is south of Lethbridge at the junction of Alberta Highway 52, Highway 52 and Alberta Highway 845, Highway 845. Raymond is known for its annual rode ...

to work as cheap labour in the

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...

industry. The family stayed on a farm in a small house with no plumbing, and the children were prohibited from going to school. Takahashi and his friends continued to practice Judo during their years in Raymond under Yoshio Katsuta's supervision at a small

Japanese Buddhist Buddhism has been practiced in Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while exten ...

church. After the war was over, he returned to high school and graduated in 1948. In 1949, Takahashi joined the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

, where he spent the next 22 years of his life. He retired from the Air Force in 1969 and began a second career by opening his

dojo A is a hall or place for immersive learning or meditation. This is traditionally in the field of martial arts, but has been seen increasingly in other fields, such as meditation and software development. The term literally means "place of the ...

on Melrose Avenue near Wellington Street West in Ottawa.

Family

Takahashi's wife and four children are also accomplished judoka who have made significant contributions to the development of Judo in Canada. His wife, June Takahashi, was one of the first women in Canada to earn a black belt in Judo, and is now ranked ''roku-dan'' (sixth-degree black belt), making her one of the highest-ranked women in the country. She coached Cameroonian judoka Françoise Nguele, who competed in the 2000

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, and her approach to Judo is heavily influenced by the highest-ranked female judoka in history,

Keiko Fukuda was a Japanese American martial artist. She was the highest-ranked female judoka in history, holding the rank of 9th ''dan'' from the Kodokan (2006), and 10th ''dan'' from USA Judo (July 2011) and from the United States Judo Federation (USJF) (S ...

. Masao and June's children Allyn Takahashi,

Phil Takahashi Philip Masato Takahashi (June 12, 1957 – June 15, 2020) was a judoka from Canada, who represented his native country at two consecutive Summer Olympics (1984 and 1988). He twice won a bronze medal at the Pan American Games during his car ...

Ray Takahashi Hugh Raymond Takahashi (born August 7, 1958) is a wrestler, judoka, coach, lecturer, and author who represented Canada in wrestling at the 1976 and 1984 Summer Olympic Games, the 1982 and 1983 Wrestling World Championships, the 1978 and 1982 Com ...

, and

Tina Takahashi Tina Takahashi is a judoka, coach, and author who won Canada's first ever gold medal in international Judo at the World University Games in 1984, and was Canada's first women's Olympic Judo coach in 1988, coaching Canada's first women's Judo O ...

, are all black belts who have been highly successful in competition, and three of them have participated in the Olympics: Phil as a competitor and Tina as a coach in Judo, and Ray as a competitor in

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

Awards

In 2002, Takahashi was decorated by the

with the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Rosette, in recognition of his service to improving the status of

Japanese-Canadians are Canadian citizens of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Canadians are mostly concentrated in Western Canada, especially in the province of British Columbia, which hosts the largest Japanese community in the country with the majority of them living ...

through his lifelong commitment to the promotion and development of

Judo in Canada The Japanese martial art and combat sport judo has been practised in Canada for over a century. The first long-term judo dojo in Canada, Tai Iku Dojo, was established by a Japanese immigrant named Shigetaka Sasaki, Shigetaka "Steve" Sasaki in Van ...

Popular culture

One of Takahashi's most famous students was former Canadian Prime Minister

Pierre Elliott Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and ...

. Trudeau began practicing Judo at Takahashi's sometime in the mid-1950s when he was in his mid-thirties, and by the end of the decade he was

ranked A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than" or "ranked equal to" the second. In mathematics, this is known as a weak order or total preorder of ...

''ik-kyū'' (brown belt). Later, when he traveled to Japan as Prime Minister, he was promoted to ''sho-dan'' (first-degree black belt) by the

Kodokan The , or ''Kōdōkan'' (講道館), is the headquarters of the worldwide judo community. The ''kōdōkan'' was founded in 1882 by Kanō Jigorō, the founder of judo, and is now an eight-story building in Tokyo. Etymology Literally, ''kō'' ( ...

, and then promoted to ''ni-dan'' (second-degree black belt) by Takahashi before leaving office. Trudeau's three sons (

Justin Justin may refer to: People * Justin (name), including a list of persons with the given name Justin * Justin (historian), a Latin historian who lived under the Roman Empire * Justin I (c. 450–527), or ''Flavius Iustinius Augustus'', Eastern Rom ...

Alexandre Alexandre may refer to: * Alexandre (given name) * Alexandre (surname) * Alexandre (film) See also * Alexander * Xano (disambiguation) Xano is the name of: * Xano, a Portuguese hypocoristic of the name "Alexandre (disambiguation) Alexandre may re ...

, &

Michel Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...

) and the children of his successor,

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...

, also took lessons at Takahashi's dojo.

Publications

References

External links

Takahashi Dojo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Takahashi, Masao 1929 births Canadian male judoka Canadian sportspeople of Japanese descent Japanese-Canadian internees 2020 deaths People from Mission, British Columbia Royal Canadian Air Force officers Sportspeople from British Columbia Sportspeople from Ottawa Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 4th class