Another judo legend has died ...

[Cichorei Kano]

In Tôkyô Sekine Shinobu, 9th dan, has died at the age of 75. Sekine-sensei obtained legendary status when in 1972 he became the only jûdôka in addition to Okano Isao to win the All Japan Championships Open while being a middle-weight himself.

Sekine also won the middleweight class at the Munich 1972 Olympics, and was a fearsome tai-otoshi specialist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h-2VLhcvEo

My Kiwi colleague who also trained in Kyôto and who also sadly died recently, i.e. Rick Littlewood, Kôdôkan 8th dan, fought him at the Munich Olympics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeGM0Y843WE

Even at the international level he was a rare middleweight who sometimes fought the Open where he confronted much heavier adversaries including Klaus Glahn, Jean-Luc Rougé, and the physically ultra-strong Soviet-Russian Vitaly Kuznetsov who lost the final at the Munich Olympics against Willem Ruska:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6OUwcLhqjM

He was the serving president of the Tôkyô Metropolitan Jûdô Federation for whom his death is an immense loss.

On a personal basis, for me, Sekine-sensei was remarkably elusive. The past decade he was scheduled twice to lead a jûdô seminar with Okano Isao in Canada, both of which I attended, but also both of which he regrettably cancelled at the last moment.

Death announcements:

Japanese:

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/201 ... 50068.html
http://www.jiji.com/jc/article?k=2018121804226&g=spo

English:

http://judoinside.com/news/3087/1972_Ol ... assed_away