Masahiko Kimura

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For other uses, see Masahiko Kimura (disambiguation).
Masahiko Kimura
Born(1917-09-10)September 10, 1917
Kumamoto, Empire of Japan
DiedApril 18, 1993(1993-04-18) (aged 75)
Tokyo, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Height170 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Weight84 kg (185 lb; 13 st 3 lb)
StyleJudo
Rank7th dan in judo
OccupationJudoka, professional wrestler
UniversityTakushoku University

Masahiko Kimura (木村 政彦, Kimura Masahiko, September 10, 1917 – April 18, 1993) was a

Japanese professional wrestling world, he is known for being one of Japan's earliest stars and the controversial match he had with Rikidōzan
.

Biography

Kimura was born on September 10, 1917, in

Kodokan
(headquarters for the worldwide judo community).

Kimura (right) along with his teacher Tatsukuma Ushijima (left).

Kimura's remarkable success can in part be attributed to his fanatical training regimen, managed by his teacher, Tatsukuma Ushijima.[5] Kimura reportedly lost only four judo matches in his lifetime, all occurring in 1935.

dōjōs resulted in numerous opponents suffering from concussions and losing consciousness. Many opponents asked Kimura not to use his osoto gari.[6][7]

At the height of his career, Kimura's training involved a thousand push-ups and nine hours of practice every day. He won the All-Japan Judo Championships, an openweight competition, for three straight years in 1937, 1938, and 1939. He was promoted to 7th dan at age 30, a rank that was frozen after disputes with Kodokan over becoming a professional wrestler, refusing to return the All Japan Judo Championship flag, and issuing dan ranks while in Brazil.[6]

Kimura also trained in

Masutatsu Oyama in his dōjō (the latter also going to university together with him and aikido master Gozo Shioda[8]). In his autobiography, Kimura attributes the use of the makiwara (a karate training implement) as taught to him by So Neichu and his friend and training partner Masutatsu Oyama, as being a significant contributor to his consequent tournament success. He began using the makiwara daily prior to his first All Japan success and never lost another competition bout.[citation needed
]

Kimura vs. Hélio Gracie

Main article: Masahiko Kimura vs. Hélio Gracie
Kimura vs Gracie, with the Japanese holding the Brazilian in a kesa-gatame.

In 1949, after touring for Hawaii, Kimura and his troupe formed by judoka Toshio Yamaguchi and Yukio Kato went to Brazil after an invitation by the

Sao Paulo Shimbun. There they were challenged by Hélio Gracie of the Gracie family.[9][10] Gracie proposed a match under what would be known as the "Gracie Rules", in which throws and pins would not count towards victory, with only submission or loss of consciousness.[10] This played against judo rules in which pins and throws can award someone a victory, but they accepted nonetheless.[11]

Kato was the first to accept the challenge, drawing with Hélio Gracie in their match at the

Sao Paulo
. Hélio proposed to continue with the challenge, and Yamaguchi appointed himself the next to fight. Kimura, however, volunteered to fight in his place.

The bout between Gracie and Kimura took place again in the Maracana stadium, before an audience of 20,000 people, including president of Brazil Getúlio Vargas. The expectation was such that, according to a source, Kimura had been warned by the Japanese embassy that he would not be welcomed back in Japan if he lost the match.[12] Kimura was received in the arena with raw eggs and insults by the Brazilian crowds, and the Gracie challengers brought a coffin to symbolize Kimura would be dead, just like they had done with Kato.

At the start of the match, Hélio tried to throw him down with

kuzure-kami-shiho-gatame
.

After a number of holds by the Japanese, including

sankaku-jime and do-jime, the Brazilian looked unable to breathe under Kimura, but he persevered until he tried to switch position by pushing with his arm. At that moment, Kimura seized the limb and executed gyaku-ude-garami
. Hélio did not surrender, and Kimura rotated the arm until it broke. As Gracie still refused to give up, Masahiko twisted the arm further and broke it again.

Finally, when the judoka was about to twist it a third time, Gracie's corner threw the towel, and Kimura was declared winner. A crowd of Japanese came and tossed Kimura high in celebration, while doctors treated Hélio's arm.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and, more recently, mixed martial arts
circles.

Professional wrestling career

In the early 1950s, Kimura founded Kokusai Pro Wrestling Association.

Japan Pro Wrestling Association. They performed both as tag team partners and as opponents, but Kimura was not marketed or publicized as much as Rikidōzan. In 1954, their series of matches with the Canadian Sharpe Brothers, who were portraying foreign villains, were the first high-profile pro wrestling matches in Japan and led to a pro wrestling boom.[17][18]

The Rikidōzan vs. Kimura match for the Japanese Professional Wrestling Heavyweight title was a high-profile match, but, according to Kimura, it didn't go as planned, being one of the earliest examples of a shoot in modern professional wrestling.

The match was supposed to go to a draw and set up a series of rematches, but they never happened. During its course, in a spot in which Kimura would let Rikidōzan strike him with a karate chop in the chest, Rikidōzan broke the script and attacked Kimura for real, striking him in the neck instead and using full force. According to the judoka, the chop hit his neck arteries and he was rendered unconscious, while his opponent started to kick him on the ground. Rikidōzan won the match by knockout, and Kimura never received a rematch.

On December 8, 1963, while partying in a Tokyo nightclub, Rikidōzan was stabbed with a urine-soaked blade by gangster Katsushi Murata who belonged to the

Toshiya Masuda
would release in 2011 the book Why Kimura Didn't Kill Rikidozan, in which this theory is dismissed.

Kimura formed the International Pro Wrestling Force (IPWF), a promotion based in his hometown of Kumamoto, as a local affiliate of The Japan Wrestling Association (JWA). Although JWA later took over operations, IPWF is remembered for being the first Japanese promotion to introduce Mexican

Lucha Libre
wrestlers.

Some biographers note that his professional wrestling career began shortly after his wife was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and it is speculated by some that he began professional wrestling to pay for her medication. Indeed, the predicament was likely beyond the financial means of a police instructor, which was his paying job prior to professional wrestling.

In the

Korean film about Rikidozan released in 2004, Kimura is portrayed by Masakatsu Funaki
but his surname is written Imura rather than Kimura.

Kimura vs. Waldemar Santana

Kimura went to Brazil again in 1959 to conduct his last professional wrestling tour, and he was challenged by

vale tudo rules ten days later, with Kimura accepting both.[19] A match against Carlson was also suggested, but the latter declined due to a hand injury.[19]

The first match was placed on July 1 at

Diario de Noite stated "Kimura won at will".[19]

The second, on the other hand, attracted much more interest, as Santana was a veteran of vale tudo competition while Kimura was not.

clinch against the ropes.[19] Kimura tried to execute ippon seoi nage, but he slipped and fell to the ground, where Santana started striking him with punches and headbutts through his guard. Eventually, the judoka caught the Brazilian in the momentum of a headbutt and broke his nose with a punch from the bottom. The competitors, both tired and bleeding, disengaged and returned to standing, where they continued exchanging strikes until the clock marked the end of the match.[19]

Death

Kimura died on April 18, 1993, after a long battle with lung cancer. He was 75 years old.[20]

Achievements

  • All-Japan Collegiate Championships (1935)
  • 1936 Takudai Kosen Judo Championship
  • 7th All-Japan Judo Championships (1937)
  • 8th All Japan Judo Championship (1938)
  • 9th All Japan Judo Championship (1939)
  • Ten-Ran Shiai tournament (1940)
  • 1947 West Japan Judo Championship
  • 1949 All Japan Judo Championship (drew with Takahiko Ishikawa)

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ Jim Chen, Theodore Chen. The Man Who Defeated Helio Gracie. July 3, 2003.
  2. ^ Andrew Lundy, John Molinaro, Dan Tavares. Japanese Athletes. CBC Sports. November 15, 2006.
  3. ^ Lawrence Eng. Grappling: Fact and Fiction. October 7, 2000.
  4. ^ Attack The Back The Kimura – A History & Techniques Retrieved on August 9, 2018
  5. ISBN 978-4583615509
  6. ^ a b c d Jim Chen M.D. Masahiko Kimura Biography Archived 2012-06-22 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ a b Masahiko Kimura Excerpt from My Judo 1984.
  8. ^ "Aikido and Judo – Interview with Gozo Shioda and Masahiko Kimura". 13 January 2014.
  9. ^ Chen, J. (c. 2003): Masahiko Kimura (1917–1993): The man who defeated Helio Gracie Retrieved on April 7, 2010.
  10. ^ a b "Gods of War: Masahiko Kimura". 25 September 2012.
  11. ^ "Gurnee Judo Club". Archived from the original on 2013-10-12.
  12. ^ Mehdi, Roberto Pedreira, Global Training Report. December 2001
  13. ^ Jim Chen, M.D. and Theodore Chen Masahiko Kimura The Man Who Defeated Helio Gracie Archived 2013-09-07 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on April 24, 2012
  14. ^ "'My Judo' by Masahiko Kimura, His Story & Vision in His Own Words Part 2". 30 May 2020.
  15. ^ "Masahiko Kimura Bio".
  16. ^ Sports Graphic Number vol. 70 February 19, 1983.
  17. ^ "50 Years of NHK Television". www.nhk.or.jp. Retrieved 2023-06-03.
  18. ^ Oliver, Greg (June 2, 2010). "PWHF inductees Ben & Mike Sharpe were giants". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 2023-06-03.
  19. ^
    ISBN 978-85-914075-7-6
    .
  20. ^ "20TH ANNIVERSARY OF MASAHIKO KIMURA'S DEATH". BJJ Scandinavia. Archived from the original on 6 February 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2020.

Sources

External links

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