Doug Rogers (judoka)
Judoka | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Weight | 118 kg (260 lb) (1964)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Judo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | +80 kg, +93 kg, Open | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | 6th dan black belt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Takushoku University, Tokyo[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by |
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| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympic Games |  (1964) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Champ. | 
(1965) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pan American Champ. | 
(1965) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| Profile at external databases | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| IJF | 54617, 54551 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| JudoInside.com | 8736 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Updated on June 25, 2023. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alfred Harold Douglas Rogers (January 26, 1941 – July 20, 2020) was a
Biography
Doug Rogers arrived in Japan in 1960 at the age of 19 with the specific intention of working on his judo.
The best judo competitors at the time in Japan were coming out of the
Able to hold his own against top judoka in Japan, the Canadian Olympic Committee, in search of medal hopefuls and, moreover, pleased that he was already in Japan where the Olympics were to be held, recruited Rogers.[3] Rogers decided, however, to return to Canada to compete in the national championships, and the Olympic Committee were at first reluctant to pay for Rogers' airfare back to Japan. Eventually they settled for paying for a one-way ticket.
Rogers' day at the Olympics is best described by Frank Moritsugu, a contemporary of his:
With coach Frank Hatashita at matside, on that October 1964 day at the Budokan, Doug had an easy time in the early rounds. In the semis he clearly decisioned a tough opponent, the bull-like Soviet competitor P. Chikviladze, eliminating one of the possible winners. Then came the heavy weight finals where his opponent was Isao Inokuma, the all-Japan champion. Inokuma was shorter and many pounds lighter but much more experienced and perhaps Japan's supreme judo technician. And he was an occasional training partner of Rogers at the Kodokan. Theirs was a hard-fought match which we watched agonizingly on our TV sets here in Canada. Neither man could throw the other cleanly although both managed to complete throws which ended off the tatami. At the end of a truly championship bout, it was a narrow decision for Inokuma but with his silver medal, Doug Rogers had become Canada's first judoka to mount the Olympic medal podium at the first Olympics where judo was included.[4]
Parts of Rogers' silver medal-winning performance against Isao Inokuma at the Tokyo 1964 Summer Olympics are included in the documentary film Tokyo Olympiad (1965) directed by Kon Ichikawa.[5]
Post Olympics
After the Olympics, Rogers trained full-time with Kimura and the Takudai team. In the summer of 1965 Rogers participated in the All-Japan University Championships as a member of the Takushoku University team and helped them bring the winner's pennant back to Takudai for the first time in several years. Not only was Doug the first non-Asian foreigner to take part in this tournament, he was also named the tournament's best fighter.
Rogers felt very close to Kimura, regarded him as a father figure and stayed in touch with him until his death in 1993. Kimura demanded a very high level of physical fitness and concentrated on training simple, strong judo moves. His training style was somewhat informal compared to the strict etiquette and bowing rituals practiced in the western world to this day. Kimura often came onto the mats in sweat pants and threw on a judogi only as needed to demonstrate a technique.
Despite being encouraged by Kimura to stay another year, Rogers decided to return to Canada to pursue becoming a professional pilot, having attained a private operator's license at age 16. After a summer tour with the Takudai team to a number of Japanese universities, Rogers left Japan in 1965, seen off by his teammates carrying their winner's pennants and by his coach Masahiko Kimura.
Doug Rogers went on to win gold at two Pan-American games and several Canadian National championships. Another mark of his judo skill is his taking of 5th place at the 1972 Olympics despite having been out of serious training for many years. Once in Canada, he was spending hours a day in a cockpit rather than on the mats. He no longer had Kimura as a coach nor did he have the quality of practice opponents that a world champion needed.[3]
Rogers retired from a career as an airline pilot.[2] He was married with four grown children. Although less active in judo later in life, he still went to local tournaments and was often an invited guest/coach at clubs throughout Greater Vancouver, British Columbia.
See also
References
- ^ a b DeGeer, Vern (October 29, 1964). "Good Morning". The Montreal Gazette. p. 19. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
- ^ a b c Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Doug Rogers". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e "Doug Rogers". Canada Sports Hall of Fame. 2008. Archived from the original on November 25, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
- ^ Judo Ontario: Tales From the Postwar Era When Judo Changed Forever, Judo Ontario, 2004
- ^ "Tokyo 1964 Official Film". Olympics.com. 2013 [1964]. Archived from the original on May 9, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021. Rogers' appearance begins at the 1 hour 45 minutes mark.
Further reading
- Rogers, Michelle Marrian Anna (2005). Twentieth Century Travels: Tales of a Canadian Judoka (PDF). MA thesis, University of Victoria. A Master's thesis in Anthropologyabout Rogers, written by his daughter.
External links
- Doug Rogers at the International Judo Federation
- Doug Rogers at the International Judo Federation
- Doug Rogers at JudoInside.com
- Doug Rogers at AllJudo.net (in French)
- Doug Rogers at Olympics.com
- Doug Rogers at Olympedia
- Doug Rogers at the Canadian Olympic Committee
- Doug Rogers at Canada's Sports Hall of Fame
- Doug Rogers at The-Sports.org
- Judoka 1965 documentary about Rogers and his life in Japan after winning silver at the 1964 Olympics (National Film Board of Canada)
- Tokyo Olympiad - film by Kon Ichikawa (Criterion Collection)
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