Jigoro Kano Memorial International Sport Institute

c/o Kishi Memorial Hall 1-1-1 Jinnan Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8050, Japan

TEL: +81 (0)3 5790 9656FAX: +81 (0)3 5790 9657E-mail: info@100yearlegacy.orgWeb: http://100yearlegacy.org

LEGACY Prof. Jigoro KanoEducat ion x Spor t x Internat ional Contr ibut ions

Prof. Jigoro Kano - A real educator for the youth (1860-1938)

Professor Jigoro Kano was born in December 1860 (28 October 1860 with lunatic calendar), at the time Japan was in a transformational era. In 1882 he founded Kodokan Judo after graduating from the Tokyo Imperial University. He served as principal for three-terms or more than 23 years at the Tokyo Higher Normal School (cur ren t Un ivers i ty o f Tsukuba) . Prof. Kano promoted educat ional reform by enhancing the structure of education and was responsible for the development of modern physical education and sport in Japan. He also contributed to the global promotion of the Olympic Movement. In May 1909, Prof. Kano was appointed to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the first Asian member at the age of 48. He devoted himself to the development of sport and youth education. Due to his passion and dedication to the holistic development of human beings through sport and education, his fellow IOC members and international colleagues in sport praised him as a real educator for the youth. As an educator with a global view, Prof. Kano envisioned the future path of the Japanese people and worked to materialise this goal.

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Kanos Achievements Education Sport International ContributionsFor 77-years, Prof. Kano lived as an educator and put his philosophy into action. He dedicated his life to developing young people through education and sport so that they can contribute to the development of an international society.

Prof. Kano incorporated practical ideas into the traditional martial art of

jujutsu, restructuring that discipline into what is now famous as Judo.

He inspired all those who practiced Judo to pursue a scientific approach in

observing, matter-of-factly, a sense of justice, fairness and modesty. His goal

was to inspire students to use the skills and experiences acquired through their

practice of Judo in order to contribute to the wider area of society. Accordingly, Prof.

Kano described the values for life reflected in the combined virtues of Seiryoku-

Zenyo ( ) and Jita-Kyoei ( ) - which stress the most effective

and efficient use of ones energy in the daily life, while serving others and the

international community, thus contributing simultaneously to the development

of society large. For Kano, Judo was the means to cultivate ones body,

mind and skills. With full acknowledgment of the benefits of Judo, Prof.

Kano opened the door to women in 1893. His formal launch of

a womens division at his Kodokan Judo Institute in 1926

was revolutionary.

Human developmentthrough Judo

For the establishment of the Japan Amateur Athletic

Association (currently the Japan Sports Association and the

Japanese Olympic Committee) in July 1911, Prof. Kano claimed

that the foundation of the state is influenced by the spirit of its citizens

and based on their physical fitness. Consequently, Prof. Kano stressed

the necessity for a structural development of sport.

Among other sports, Prof. Kano valued swimming and long-distance running

in particular, since they are suited to all people regardless of gender, age or

dexterity. A sport festival, long-distance running competitions and swimming

lessons were organised for all students of Tokyo Higher Normal School.

Accordingly, those students later disseminated these events once they

graduated to become teachers or coaches across Japan.

Upon the foundation of the Japan Sports Association, Kano

established the national championships in athletics and

swimming and also promoted various other sports.

Sport for All!

Prof. Kano was the first principal in Japan to accept students from other

countries.

From 1896 to 1909, in response to requests by the government of China (then

Qing Dynasty), Kano arranged to host more than 8,000 Chinese students across

higher education schools. In addition to studying Japanese, humanities and the natural

sciences, these international students were encouraged to take part in Judo, long-

distance running, tennis, football and many other sports. At Tokyo Higher Normal

School, Chinese students organised a football team and inter-school competitions

were held in Tokyo. Documents from this time tell us that the Japanese and

international students enjoyed the same playing field together and supported

each other in their development through sport.

Serving others in good will and learning about each other will bring

mutual benefits and welfare - this is Kanos philosophy and its

spirit can be applied to the development of a global

community in a current context.

International Cooperationand Jita-Kyoei

Prof. Kano aspired to develop a holistic approach to education. Serving more than 23-years

as the principal of Tokyo Higher Normal School, which was then a national teacher training

institution, he initiated several educational reforms. For instance, he revised the militaristic

dormitory rules to provide greater liberty to the students, expanded the curriculum and welcomed

foreign students, all of which were epoch-making. Prof. Kano also stressed practical teaching

methods based on research and established a model programme for teacher training at the

secondary level.

The Physical Education Department was launched in 1915 at Tokyo Higher Normal School.

The previous Physical Education Course was extended by one year to a four-year course and

Physical Education became a specialised and established subject, improved in both quality

and quantity. Prof. Kano also implemented extracurricular activities in schools nationwide

and established the foundation of the current structure where all pupils can

experience sport at school. For more than a century, both Physical Education

and extracurricular activity clubs have been made available to all current

students in the Japanese education system. This is exceptional

especially in consideration of recent recommendations

by the IOC and UNESCO.

Education Reform combiningintelligence, virtue and body

Prof. Kano was appointed to the IOC, its first Asian member, in 1909 and

contributed to the development of the Olympic Movement in Asia and Japan. As the

Chef de Mission, Kano initiated participation in the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games

as an international cultural exchange. He travelled across the world and promoted the

holistic development of human beings through Physical Education and Sport as well as

international exchange through sport. Anytime Prof. Kano traveled as an IOC member, he

made presentations on and gave demonstrations of Judo.

To invigorate the Olympic Movement, Kano intended to integrate the spirit of Japanese

martial arts into Olympism, and wished for Japan to host the Olympic Games in 1940.

In an article written before his death, Pierre de Coubertin also expressed his

hope that new Olympic ideals would be born from an interaction with Asian

culture through hosting the Games in Japan. Kano firmly believed that

the Olympic Movement was universal with the concepts of

East and West integrated.

Pioneer and Leader of Olympic Movement in Asia

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Jigoro Kano and his TimeProf. Kano lived in a transformational era of Japans history during a modernisation phase after the Meiji Restoration. Kano dedicated his life to the promotion of a holistic development of human beings through education and sport. The father of the Olympic Movement, Baron de Coubertin, lived in the same era as Kano and he was also committed to building a peaceful society through the Olympic Movement.

Olympic Movement

1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910

Life of Prof. Kano

1894Tokyo Higher Normal School Sports Festival

1898Judo and Kendo became compulsory at Tokyo Higher Normal School

1883Mastered Kit-ryu Jujutsu

1870Moved to Tokyo with his father and started studying Chinese classics

1875Graduated from the National Foreign Launguage School and entered the Tokyo Imperial University

1896Modern Olympic Games inaugulated in Athens

1883Coubertin traveled to England as part of his observation trip

1867Meiji Restoration

1914World War I

Historical Events

1860Born on December 10 (October 28 in lunar calendar)

1893Kodokan open to women

1909

1909

Elected to the IOC

Foreign students participated in Track & Field and Swimming at Tokyo Higher Normal School

1911

1912

Launched Japan Amateur Athletic Association

Stockholm Olympics, Chief de Mission

1893

1912

Met Coubertin for 1st time

Principal of Tokyo Higher Nomal School

Revival of Olympic Games and the IOC founded V Olympiad, Stockholm

1882Became a lecturer at Gakushin (royal dedicated school) Kano Juku & Kbunkan launched

1882

Established Kodokan Judo

1896Started accepting Chinese students

1863Baron Pierre de Coubertin born on January 1

1894

1st Olympic Congress

Kano was the initiator in accepting foreign students with government funding. A total of 8,000 Chinese students were invited and learned sport as