Kenji "Pisuken" Kano (嘉納健治, ''Kanō Kenji,'' September 24, 1881 – October 30, 1947) was a Japanese

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

and

MMA Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

promoter, the founder of the International Jūkken Club (国際柔拳倶楽部) which promoted Jūkken matches between

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, 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 Encyc ...

practitioners and boxers. He was also the founder of the Dai Nippon Boxing Association (aka Dai Nippon Kentōkai; 大日本拳闘会). His promotional activities was instrumental to the popularization of boxing in Japan. He is the nephew of Jigorō Kanō, the founder of judo.

Early life and education

Kenji Kanō was born on September 24, 1881 in Mikage, Hyōgo, (present day

Kobe Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's List of Japanese cities by population, seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Port of Toky ...

), Japan. Kenji was a student at his uncle Jigorō Kanō's private boarding school the Kanō Juku. As a youth, Kanō earned the nickname 'Pisuken' (ピス健), derived from 'pistol' and 'ken' (拳, fist) when he acquired a pistol from a sailor and practiced shooting to improve his marksmanship.

Career

In 1909, Kanō founded the International Jūkken Club, headquartered in Hyōgo (present day

), Japan. At the Jūkken club, sailors from all over the world would congregate and train. The club served as a platform for organizing and promoting hybrid matches between

fighters and boxers. These contests were initially aimed at testing the effectiveness of judo as a

combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the opponent (''knock ...

against boxing while providing entertainment for Japanese audiences. Kanō's vision was to create a space where traditional and modern martial arts could coexist and evolve. Kanō also organized and promoted matches between different styles of martial arts such as, "

Wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

Sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by th ...

," "

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, 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 Encyc ...

," and "

." The International Jūkken Club was a significant institution in the history of Japanese combat sports. The International Jūkken Club eventually became the Dai Nippon Boxing Association. Kanō's efforts introduced boxing techniques to Japan, contributing to the development of the sport in the country. His fighting events helped lay the foundation for professional boxing in Japan. Kanō's work not only popularized boxing in Japan but also helped establish a framework for hybrid competitions, also known as

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

competitions which influenced the evolution of Japanese martial arts.

References

External links

* 嘉納健治 – Japanese Wikipedia article (in Japanese) 1881 births 1947 deaths Boxing promoters People from Hyōgo Prefecture Mixed martial arts in Japan {{DEFAULTSORT:Kanō, Kenji