Judo athletes from around the world convened in San Jose on Saturday to remember the life of legendary San Jose State University judo coach Yoshihiro "Yosh" Uchida.
Uchida, who coached the first U.S. Olympic judo team and put San Jose State University's program on the map as a powerhouse in the sport, died at 104 years old back in June.
On Saturday, former students gathered at San Jose's Buddhist church Betsuin to pay respects to their former sensei.
"A man that overcame adversity. Small man in stature, but a big man at heart," said two-time Olympian Andrew Payne.
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Payne went on to compete in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics under Uchida.
Christian Aarona, a former student, said the coach's ambition and desire to get ahead will always stay with him.
"He had this sense of even no matter how hard things get, you dig deep, you get through the struggle," he said.
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Uchida, who grew up in Calexico in southern Imperial County, learned judo at the age of 10 at the urging of his mother.
Uchida's career as a judo instructor began somewhat unceremoniously in the 1940s while he was a student at San Jose State. The school's athletic director saw him on campus one day and asked if he could coach judo.
Uchida's new coaching career was soon interrupted by World War II. He was drafted into the military while his family was being sent to Japanese internment camps. After the war, he needed a job and resumed his coaching post. He was working to create weight divisions and establish judo as a competitive sport in the U.S.
In 1964, he led the first U.S. judo team to the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan – the birthplace of judo. His team included Japanese-born Paul Maruyama, which was significant because just over 20 years earlier, Uchida's family was segregated from the rest of the nation in the camps. Now, two men of Japanese ancestry were representing the U.S. in the world's most prestigious sporting event.
The ingredients that turned San Jose State into a judo powerhouse are many. Uchida regularly brought in coaches from Japan to raise the bar of instruction. Uchida also focused as heavily on academics as much as athletics – often peppering his judokas about their GPAs.
Up until Uchida's death, he was still coaching SJSU students.
Conor Uyekawa, now a senior and Judo team captain, said he remembered what coach Yosh told him as he fulfilled his freshman duties, cleaning up the dojo.
"He said to me: 'Hey, I appreciate you doing all this. I know it's a lot, first year coming into here, but this is going to build your character going into your next couple years of school.'" Uyekawa said.
All his students present said Yosh's lessons on building character based on mutual respect, humility and human decency are all things they apply to their careers.
Aside from putting SJSU's judo team on the map, Uchida helped transform Japantown, bringing in millions of dollars to develop housing and businesses in the neighborhood.
"His legacy will stand on the shoulders of giants," Payne said.
