By Alli Halbert
Judo, an Olympic sport developed in Japan, has recently become immensely popular in France as well. In fact, no other country, besides Japan, has more Olympic gold medals than France, holding 48 medals and 147 World Championship medals to its name. Judo is now the fourth most popular sport in France, beaten out by tennis, horse racing/shows, and football. More impressively, Judo is not very popular among young children worldwide, unless they were born into the sport. However, in France, 10% of all eight-year-olds in the country are registered members of the French Judo Federation, an incredibly high number.
Judo was brought over to France by Moshe Feldenkrais, an Ukrainian-Israeli engineer and physicist who is more widely known for his creation of the Feldenkrais method, a way of improving health and mobility through greater awareness of one’s own motions. However, he studied science in France, where he met Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo. Kano encouraged Feldenkrais to study Judo and Feldenkrais went on to learn the art from Mikonosuke Kawaishi, who introduced Judo to much of the European world. Feldenkrais went on to spread Judo to the rest of France himself, and it eventually developed into the widely popular sport today.
In France, most teenagers and children are involved in after-school activities, like sports or clubs. (Although these all occur outside of schools, as French schools are purely academic.) Due to this expectation, Judo is very appealing to young adults and children. It provides a good way to workout, helps develop new relationships and culture, and teaches self-defense. Additionally, Judo teaches self-discipline and inner strength, two values that are prized worldwide.
Although Judo is, at its core, a Japanese sport, it has dug roots worldwide, especially in France. There, Judo is used as a sport and form of self-discipline and appeals to all age groups. France continually shows its masterful skills and judokas in worldwide competitions and the Olympics, and it doesn’t look like they’re going to be slowing down anytime soon.