Kano Jigoro, the martial artists inventing Judo, established Kodokan Judo Institute in the second half of 19th century.

Born into a wealthy family running sake brewery and shipping industry in present time Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture, Kano Jigoro was good at teaching neighborhood children many subjects using self-made teaching materials in his youth.  Being weak and sickly, only 158 centimeters tall, he invented Judo on the basis of Jujutsu, Japan’s time-honored martial art. Even a weak and small person can defeat a strong and big one once mastering Judo.  He strived to spread this practical martial art all over the world.  He took office as an IOC member in 1909 for the first Asian, and succeeded in holding the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1936.  But this Olympic was not carried out since Japan spontaneously cancelled it to secure the budget for the military preparation.  On the way from Cairo, where an IOC general meeting was held, back to Japan, he died of pneumonia at the age of 77 in 1938.  His body was politely wrapped with the Olympic flag.  He built the first Kodokan Judo Institute in Ueno, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo in 1882, then after repeated relocations, it finally settled in Kasuga, Bunkyo-ku in 1958 as shown in the first photo.  The second photo shows the statue of him standing in front of the entrance hall of Kodokan building.

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