Leo White (born November 3, 1957 [1] ) is a former Army Officer and two time member of the US olympic judo team. [2] White is one of the winningest judoka in US history. [3] White currently holds the rank of 8th degree black belt in judo.
Leo White (born November 3, 1957 [1] ) is a former Army Officer and two time member of the US olympic judo team. [2] White is one of the winningest judoka in US history. [3] White currently holds the rank of 8th degree black belt in judo.
White was the son of a retired Army Sergeant [2] and attended Monterey Peninsula College. [4] White attended ROTC and graduated from Cumberland College in 1980. [2] In 1984, he competed in the Olympics as a Captain in the Army. [5] White along with Bob Byrd implemented a judo program in Atlanta as an option outside of serving time for minor criminal offenses. [6] White has been described as a gentleman and outstanding competitor. [7] He married judo competitor Jackie White in 1993 [8] and is currently the coach at Wakamusha Judo Club. [9]
White started judo at the age of 10 in Monterey California at the Monterey Judo, Jujitsu Academy and was instructed by sensei Bernard Baptista. At age 18 he won the 1976 United States Judo Federation Young Men's Championships. [10] White won the collegiate championships in 1976 as well as the 1980 Pan Am's [2] and AAU Nations. [4] White won a silver in the 1981 CISM games. [11] In 1982, White won two Golds in the World Military Judo Championships. [12] White was a member of the US Team that won the Dutch Open in 1983. [13] White became a 1983 Black Belt Magazine Hall of Fame Competitor of the Year. [14] In 1983, White beat out Brewster Thompson for a berth at the 1984 Olympics. [15] White was on the 1984 US Olympic Team as well as the 1992 US Olympic Team. [16]
Yasuhiro Yamashita is a Japanese judoka. He currently works as an instructor or advisor for numerous organizations, including Tokai University, the International Judo Federation, and the All Japan Judo Federation. He retired from competitive judo on 17 June 1985 after a remarkable career where he won five gold medals in international competitions and marked 203 consecutive victories until his retirement where he went undefeated his entire career against non-Japanese wrestlers. He received the Japanese National Prize of Honor on 9 October 1984. He is considered the greatest judoka ever.
Michael Lee Swain is one of the most successful American judokas. He competed in countless international competitions. He is now the VP of Martial Arts at Dollamur, Sports LP where he develops and sells Martial Arts equipment and continues to be a spokesperson and board member for USA Judo.
Teimoc Johnston-Ono is a judo competitor and instructor.
Mark Berger is a Canadian judoka. A winner of the gold medal in the Men's Heavyweight Judo event at the 1983 Pan American Games and the bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics, he was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 1994. He was born in Ukraine and became a Canadian citizen in the late 1970s. He won gold medals in the heavyweight division in the 1981 Maccabiah Games and the 1985 Maccabiah Games in Israel.
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 Olympian Sandra Greaves. She was the first Canadian woman to achieve the rank of roku-dan, and the first women's Sport Canada carded athlete. Takahashi was Canadian champion 9 times, has taught Judo for more than 30 years, and was inducted into the Judo Canada Hall of Fame in 1998. Also in 2016, she was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame. In 2008, she was named as Chair of the National Grading Board by Judo Canada. Takahashi is the daughter of Canadian judoka Masao Takahashi and June Takahashi, and the sister of Olympians Phil Takahashi and Ray Takahashi.
Shintaro Higashi is a Japanese-American judo competitor and 6th degree black belt in judo for the United States in the 100 kg category. He is the head instructor at the Kokushi Budo Institute, a member of the New York Athletic Club, and a professor at Brooklyn College.
Eve Aronoff-Trivella is a former Olympic judoka from the United States.
Lynn Joyce Roethke is an American female judoka competitor. Among her most notable accomplishments, Lynn is a two-time Olympic athlete, a Pan American gold medalist, and World Champion Silver medalist. She was the first female to be inducted to the Black Belt Hall of Fame and voted as Olympic Athlete of the Year. She competed in the −61 kg division for most of her competitive career.
James "Brewster" Thompson is a former judoka competitor. James was an Olympic alternate for the US team in 1984.
Richard " Blinky" Elizalde is an American judoka, coach and former competitor.
Steve Seck is a former competitive judoka for the United States. Seck was the 1976 alternate for the U.S. Judo Team.
James Takemori was an American judoka and World War II veteran.
Yoshito Vince Tamura was a former international competitor in judo.
Jan Trussell (Janet_Trussell) is a former competitor in judo, freestyle wrestling and sambo. She won the US National Championships in sambo. Trussell also won the US National Championship in judo. She is a multiple time winner in the World Sambo Championships. She is the sister of Rebecca Trussell.
Steven Jay "Steve" Cohen is an American former Olympic judoka and Olympic coach. He won the US National Judo Championships in 1974, 1975, 1977, 1985, and 1987. He won a gold medal at the 1973 Maccabiah Games, a bronze medal at the 1975 Pan American Games, and a silver medal at the 1986 Goodwill Games.
Miguel Tudela is a former judoka for the 1980 United States Olympics team but he did not compete due to the 1980 Summer Olympics boycott.
Craig John Agena is a former Olympic level judoka for the United States. He competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics.
Noriaki Bunasawa also known commonly as Nori Bunasawa, is a Japanese martial artist, judoka, US technical coach at the 1972 Olympic games in Munich, coach of team USA at the 1975 World Judo Championships, Japanese judo-jujutsu researcher and historian, writer, sports journalist, actor, fight choreographer, script consultant, and IJF media executive for the coverage of the 1996 Olympic games in Atlanta. He owned and established martial arts specialty newspaper Judo Jiujitsu Pro-fighting Journal in the US, which covered judo, jujutsu, sumo, BJJ, MMA and other professional combat sports news. He co-authored a novel based on Mitsuyo Maeda's life The Toughest Man Who Ever Lived which will be adapted into a feature film by a major production company of which he will be a script consultant and action choreographer. He is also the founder of the Mitsuyo Maeda based fighting method: Bunasawa Jukkendo.
Rebecca "Becky" Scott, née Trussell, is an American retired martial arts athlete who competed in sambo and judo. She is a US National Championships Bronze Medalist in judo. At the time, this was the highest level of competition as there was no world championship. She eventually became a team alternate for the first Judo World Championship for women. Scott competed at 149lbs. Scott competed at the Sambo at the 1983 Pan American Games Scott was a 5 time National Champion in sombo. She additionally won the 1984 AAU National Women's Sombo championships.
Karen Hummer, from Cranford, New Jersey, is a former competitor in Judo and a US National Champion.
