![]() Maruyama in 1984 | |
Personal information | |
---|---|
National team | United States |
Born | Tokyo | October 27, 1941
Employer | Colorado College |
Sport | |
Country | United States |
Sport | Judo |
Weight class | 154 pound |
University team | San José State University |
Now coaching | United States Air Force Academy |
Achievements and titles | |
Olympic finals | QF - 1964 |
National finals | Champion - 1966, 1970, 1975 |
Updated on 11 February 2017 |
Lecturer Paul Kuniaki Maruyama (born October 27, 1941, in Tokyo) was a member of the first American team to compete in judo in the Summer Olympics. Judo was first included in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Maruyama was born in Kugayama, Tokyo, in 1941, son of Kunio Maruyama and his nisei wife, Mary Takeda. He is a graduate of San José State University (B.S.) and of University of Hawaii (M.B.A.). He was the United States national champion in the 154 pound weight class in 1966, 1970 and 1975, and placed second in the open weight class in 1966. [1] At the 1964 Summer Olympics he was eliminated in the quarter-finals of the lightweight competition after losing to gold medalist Takehide Nakatani. He was the coach of the United States judo team for the 1980 Summer Olympics, boycotted by the United States, and for the 1984 Summer Olympics. [2]
Maruyama went on to teach martial arts and Japanese language at the United States Air Force Academy, and served as president of the Japan-America Society of Southern Colorado. He teaches Japanese language and Asian Studies at Colorado College. He is a lifelong friend with former teammate, politician Ben Nighthorse Campbell.
Ben Nighthorse Campbell is an American politician who represented Colorado's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1987 to 1993 and was a United States Senator from Colorado from 1993 to 2005. He serves as one of 44 members of the Council of Chiefs of the Northern Cheyenne Indian Tribe. During his time in office, he was the only Native American serving in Congress. He was the last Native American elected to the U.S. Senate until the 2022 election of Cherokee Markwayne Mullin.
Alfred Harold Douglas Rogers was a Canadian Olympic competitor in judo, and the first Canadian to win an Olympic medal in the sport. He was an honoured member in the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. His best results were a silver medal in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and a gold medal at the Pan American Games, in 1967. He was a student of Masahiko Kimura.
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James Steven Bregman was a member of the first American team to compete in judo at the Summer Olympics. A founding member and President of the United States Judo Federation, in his competitive career he was a bronze Olympic medalist (1964), a World Championships bronze medalist (1965), a Pan American Championships gold medalist, and a Maccabiah Games gold medalist (1965).
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John Watts is a retired American judoka who competed at the 1972 Olympics in the open weight category. Watts weighed 280 lbs when he started training in judo in August 1966 and that year entered the Air Force Championships where he defeated Paul Maruyama. Watts was quickly promoted to brown belt, and placed in the 1967 US Nationals. He also competed in the International Military Sports Council games.
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