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Shigetaka "Steve" Sasaki was a Japanese and Canadian judoka who founded the first judo club in Canada and is considered the 'Father of Canadian Judo'. After establishing the Tai Iku Dojo in Vancouver in 1924, Sasaki and his students opened several branch schools in British Columbia. In 1940, however, all dojos were shut down by the government and their Japanese members forced into internment camps due to fears that Japanese-Canadians would act against Canada on behalf of Japan during the Second World War. After the War was over, the government encouraged internees to relocate, and many of Sasaski's students went on to establish their own dojos across Canada. Sasaki was inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 1986 as a 'builder'.
Judo Canada, formerly known as The Canadian Kodokan Black Belt Association, is the non-profit national governing body of the Japanese martial art and combat sport Judo in Canada, and a federation of Judo associations in each of the ten provinces and three territories. It was incorporated in 1956 and recognized by the International Judo Federation in 1958.
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Duncan Vignale is a Canadian judoka who has played a significant role in the development of judo in Canada and especially Ontario. He has held several important positions such as President of Judo Ontario and Vice-President of Judo Canada, coached the Ontario judo team, and served as a kata judge for the International Judo Federation. He won the Syl Apps Special Achievement Award in 2011, was made a Lifetime Member of Judo Ontario in 2013, and is one of just seventeen Canadian judoka to achieve the rank of hachidan. Vignale was also selected as an alternate to Doug Rogers for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
References
- ↑ Gill, Nicolas; Leyshon, Glynn (2019). Judoka: The History of Judo in Canada (Second ed.). Montreal: Marcel Broquet. p. 171.
- ↑ Gill, Nicolas; Leyshon, Glynn (2019). Judoka: The History of Judo in Canada (Second ed.). Montreal: Marcel Broquet. p. 181.
- ↑ "About". Mississauga Judo Club. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
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