Tokugoro Ito (1878-January 22, 1939) was a Japanese judoka and professional wrestler. [1] Ito was one of the founding fathers of mixed martial arts in Brazil. [2]
Tokugoro Ito (1878-January 22, 1939) was a Japanese judoka and professional wrestler. [1] Ito was one of the founding fathers of mixed martial arts in Brazil. [2]
Ito was an instructor of judo at Tokyo Imperial University in Japan. [3] In 1911, Akitaro Ono and Tokugoro Ito joined Mitsuyo Maeda and Soshihiro Satake in Cuba. The four men were known as the "Four Kings of Cuba". [4]
Ito's first wrestling match against someone was not Japanese occurred in 1909. [3] Ito defeated American Wrestler Eddie Robinson. [5] In 1914, Ito engaged in many matches. He initially lost but later defeated Ad Santel in a wrestling match. [6] The loss was a result of Ito being thrown on his head by Santel. [3] Ito at the time was a 5th degree black belt in judo. [7] He additionally defeated Joe Acton.
In his later years he founded the Rafu Judo Dojo in Los Angeles and previously was a leader of the Seattle Dojo from 1907 to 1911. [8] His notable students included Tsutao Higami. [9] Ito was also an instructor of Geo Omori and Sanpo Toku.