The Best Kosen Judo Player Ever? - From the Source interview

From our interview with the senior teacher at the Nagoya University Judo Club, Yuji Nimura, on Kosen Judo. This video answer the question "who is the greatest Kosen Judo player ever?" and includes:
- The story of Masahiko Kimura's unsuccessful start at Kosen Judo
- Techniques used in the match with Helio Gracie
- Kimura as the last great player before Kosen Judo stopped being widely practiced.
The interview took place on 16 June 2018 at Nagoya University (Gym No.4), Nagoya City, Japan. Thanks to Yuji Nimura, MD. and the Nagoya University Judo Club (Meidai Judo).
Yuji Nimura, MD.
- Master, Nagoya University Judo Club
- Special Member of the Medical Committee, All Japan Judo Federation
- Medical Commission Member, International Judo Federation.

[@airplanebuilder8685]

Finally, someone with first hand knowledge of Masahiko Kimura, not just the fairytales from Rener Gracie. ;-)

[@HandRpuffin]

Mr. Nimura is awesome.

[@devriestown]

Oh wow what a cool guy. Thank you so much for this. I respect kimura so much i just got my yellow belt in judo at 33 been training judo for 6 months i love it.

[@JonRamurz]

Incredible interview! Thanks so much for this!

[@CombatLifeSoft]

Thanks - glad you liked it!

[@nasri]

This series is gold!

[@adamshahirkayoom]

Love this!

[@rogermayerapm5641]

Nice interview thank you.

[@glennhynes5263]

Amazing video. What wonderful gentleman. I could watch him talk all day. Great channel. Thanks

[@teovu5557]

Ude Garami doesnt mean "armlock" it a specific type of bent armlock like the americana or kimura which kimura was famous for.

[@dpajc056]

Holly crap Kimura looked IMPRESSIVE. I’d cross the street and take the other sidewalk if I saw him coming my way

[@silentmind34]

The cauliflower ears on that man....and he looks like such a kind grandfather sorta fella

[@williambindley421]

Thank you so much for the interview. When I teach kimura to BJJ beginners, I always make sure to mention the man as well; BJJ gave it that name to pay respect so I think I'd be doing a disservice not to mention him. I'd be very interested to know whether Mr Nimura considers Kimura the best Kosen Judo practitioner ever pound for pound, or the best in the sense that he'd win against everyone in their prime in an "absolute" weight division. Thanks again

[@erikdelcid9257]

It’s a double wrist lock, learned it from Catch Wrestling

[@Keepitsimple0912]

​@@erikdelcid9257it has always been part of judo, and even before it was part of Japanese jiu jitsu, it's called ude garami, we have scrolls dating back hundreds of years depicting that technique

[@teovu5557]

@@erikdelcid9257 Jujutsu scrolls and other asian systems(like cambodians angkor wat murals) shows the same technique......It predates catch no offense.

[@Katcom111]

Interesting story about Kimura. I do admire Kimura hardwork.

[@lemmingsinsight89]

Could you please ask him about Isogai Hajime? I've read that Isogai was the one who started Kosen Judo.

[@fabiocarril6723]

This teacher is great. Please thank him from martial arts fans, and could you please ask him to make a timeline of Kosen Judo development since the begining, and who were the main charaters? I think there are many folks who would like to know where BJJ was fed from afterall :)

[@wayne47able]

Fábio Carril BJJ is just a modified version of Kosen Judo with an extension of techniques

[@judopr]

@@wayne47able Its basically the same. Japanese flavor or Brazilian flavor? : )

[@wayne47able]

judopr And as a matter of fact, I have misspoken. BJJ does not even come from Kosen Judo, Maeda was not a Kosen Judo practitioner. Maeda studied traditional Kodokan Judo and also learned catch wrestling from his time in the west. BJJ is a hybrid marria art of Kodokan techniques as well as catch wrestling techniques, with the addition of No Gi. What makes BJJ so different is how they set their techniques up to get the submission. They place a stronger emphasis on it than any form of Jiu Jistu that came before it

[@judopr]

@@wayne47able BJJ is indeed an hybrid martial art/sport. BJJ and Judo are great styles. By the way.. There is only one style of judo (Kodokan). Kosen Judo is a ruleset competition variation.

[@abbisgm3453]

@@wayne47able man judo has those Techniques why is call Brazilian jiu jitsu?? Is a Japanese word to refer to the gentle way is a hand to hand combat also having a lot lock techniques and before judo was call Kano jiu jitsu before being judo that’s why is call also Bjj Japanese influence most martial has Japanese influence

[@bazokie]

I am LOVING these. Thank you. Please ask why they stopped doing Kosen J in high schools?

[@CombatLifeSoft]

I will try to get an answer before too long - planning a trip to Japan a few months from now, so will hopefully arrange another interview to ask follow up questions.

[@bazokie]

@@CombatLifeSoft Cool thanks. Where all in Japan will you be heading? I do BJJ in Japan and help a high school judo team in Nagasaki with their newaza.

[@CombatLifeSoft]

@@bazokie Sounds great. I'm hoping to train some BJJ in Tokyo and Kosen Judo in Nagoya.

[@oneguy7202]

When stop teach kosen judo in high schools, did they teach in all or just 7?

[@MeroGrumble]

As far as I now, martial arts where prohibited in Japan by the US occupants after World War 2 until the 50's (as it had been the case previously in several British colonies in Asia for instance, where the victor did not want the locals to train combat for understandable reasons). Kosen judo was not re-launched afterwards but somehow survived in the seven Imperial universities using a similar competition ruleset ("nanatei judo"). And by extension, the term "kosen" judo is sometimes still used by some groundwork expert to describe their style. For instance, the term kosen judo is used on the cover of Koji Komuro's book to describe its content Komuro. trained as a teenager under a former kosen judoka.

[@oneguy7202]

Why they don't try make kosen more popular in Japan and the world after all is judo?

[@CombatLifeSoft]

Mr Nimura was involved in a program in France in 2014. I believe the students found it difficult to understand the focus and team spirit of Kosen Judo. Here is some video of the program: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p57ZY6yMar-Bf5I

[@oneguy7202]

@@CombatLifeSoft thx

[@teovu5557]

its gaining popularity and never in danger of dying out in Japan as its a popular ruleset in many universities now. They even had a france vs Japan kosen tournament- kzbin.info/www/bejne/fouYommDnreEgJI

[@topnotchpinas4244]

Kimura was the shihan of mas oyama he gave masoyama he's 4 degree black belt in judo there's no kyokushin if there's no kimura as the big brother

[@seteetlemonde7656]

KIMURA THE BEST

[@muaythaikicks3418]

Oh wait kimura??

[@ReisterJP]

Oda was the best ever.

[@1_Bad_Z]

Kimura trained with Wigan Catch Wrestler Karl Gotch. Judo Gene Le Bell too was a student of Karl Gotch. Billy Robinson who trained Sakuraba in an Interview said that it was Karl who taught Kimura the double wrist lock. Gene Le Bell has gone on record that Karl taught Gene the double wrist lock

[@PauloJonatasSilveira]

Is completely fake... Kimura already existed in Brazil in the 30's, both in catch and in jiujitsu/judo... Hélio won the fight with a double wrist lock, George Gracie won and lost a fight with a double wrist lock, I've seen this move in ancient Japanese Judo long before that... There are MYTHS about the names in Jiujitsu... as if the names were baptized in HONOR... this is 100% FALSE! Brazilians are ANARCHIC by nature, hate rules, hate bureaucracy, hates hierarchy, with that most of the technique didn't have names or borrowed the name of other arts because nobody cared about that... Then when you wanted to identify a technique, sometimes it was easier to use the name of someone famous for using the technique... "that kimura lock", "that American lock", "that Ezequiel chocke" all techniques that ALWAYS EXISTED but that didn't have a name come standardized in Brazil... Someone famous used a move and became associated with a technique, it wasn't anyone who decided that the technique would be called "X", it was the people who ORGANICLY started using the name of the person to facilitate the identification of which technique it is...

[@1_Bad_Z]

@@PauloJonatasSilveira Judo Gene Le Bell is in his 80's. He has given credit to Karl Gotch for teaching him the double wrist lock. How is it possible that he didn't learn it while training in Judo?

[@Karen-fs6lf]

In the ground work kata developed in 1895 by kano called katame no kata it is there udi garam look it up

[@1_Bad_Z]

@@Karen-fs6lf are you aware that around that time period a Jujitsu stylist was beat by a Catch Wrestler. He was beat easily. The late Billy Robinson who trained Sakuraba has stated that.

[@sambolife2764]

Good for them but ude garami was already in judo as well, this might be a shock but techniques can have multiple origins 😲