The following is a list of celebrities who have trained in the martial art and sport of judo.
Athletes Ronda Rousey (professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, b.1987), a 6th dan judoka, former champion in the mixed martial arts organization UFC, former professional wrestler with WWE. Yoshiro Akiyama (mixed martial artist and TV star, b. 1975). One FC fighter and a former UFC fighter. Known as Choo Sung-hoon in Korea. Also one of the stars of the 2023 South Korean reality television series Physical 100. Kayla Harrison (professional mixed martial artist and Judoka, b.1990), a 6th dan judoka, won the women's 78 kg in the 2010 World Judo Championships.
Academics and educators Moshé Feldenkrais (scientist/healer/author/teacher, b.1904 d.1984) held a Doctor of Science in engineering from the Sorbonne, and was the founder of the Feldenkrais Method which was designed to improve human functioning by increasing self-awareness through movement. Feldenkrais started learning judo in 1930,Past Personalities - The Budokwai and met Kano Jigoro in 1933. He became a close friend of Kano, and corresponded with him regularly.Some History from the Australian Feldenkrais Center Kano chose him to be one of the doors through which the East attempts to meet the West.Feldenkrais and Judo by Dennis Leri He was one of the first Europeans to be awarded a black belt (in 1936), and he received his 2nd dan in 1938. From his position on the European Judo Council, he began to scientifically study Judo, later incorporating the knowledge he gained through his self-rehabilitation. He founded the French Judo AssociationMoshe Feldenkrais, D.Sc., (1904 - 1984) Biography (achievingexcellence.com) and published three books about judo. Terry Halpin (computer scientist): Halpin is an Australian academic who is well known in the field of modelling information systems, having authored five books and over one hundred technical papers. He holds a black belt in judo.Asymetrix Corp.'s Dr. Terry Halpin - Black Belt Design DBMS Interview - September 1995 Aza Raskin (computer scientist, b.1984): Aza Raskin, son of the late, noted human–computer interface expert Jef Raskin, is an American user experience and product design experthttp://www.oneopensource.it/01/09/2008/int.erview-aza-raskin-head-of-user-experience-for-mozilla-labs/ who practises judo. Humanized, Inc - Who We Are He is currently Head of User Experience at Mozilla Labs. Raskin gave his first talk on user interface at age 10BayCHI Monthly Program, Tuesday, September 13, 1994 and by 20 he was speaking internationally.EuroPython Society - The Failure of Applications Kano Jigoro (educator, b.1860 d.1938): Kano was director of primary education for the Japanese Ministry of Education (文部省, Monbushō) from 1898 to 1901. He played a key role in getting judo and kendo made part of the Japanese public school programs. He was also a pioneer of international sports, and became the first Asian member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), serving from 1909 until 1938. Kano was the founder of judo.
Actors and entertainers
Lucille Ball (actress): Ed Parker, the founder of American Kenpo Karate, taught judo to Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance on The Lucy Show show.The Godfather of Grappling (authorised biography of LeBell) by "Judo" Gene Lebell, Bob Calhoun, George Foon, and Noelle Kim. 2005. Page 13 (includes photo). James Cagney (actor b.1899 d.1986): Cagney was a judo black belt."James Cagney is a judo black belt" (judoinfo.com) Cagney performed numerous judo techniques in the film Blood on the Sun. Blackie Chen: Taiwanese TV host who was selected to train in judo as well as basketball in high school. He sparred with Xiao Huangqi in a TV show and could not escape from a pin. Blackie is a blue belt in judo. Sonny Chiba: 2nd-Dan black belt in Judo, mostly famous for portraying Hattori Hanzō in Kill Bill and Shadow Warriors Melanie C (formerly Sporty Spice of the Spice Girls): had to withdraw from her involvement in the TV series The Games in 2003 due to a knee injury sustained in the judo competition against 2002 Miss World Azra Akın.Ex-Spice Girl Mel C faces surgery - BBC News, 12 September 2003 George Harris (judo movie star): Harris starred in a feature film titled "Judo's Gentle Tiger", also known as "The Year of the Gentle Tiger". A forerunner to "The Karate Kid", it was shot in the late 1970s, and was later broadcast as an NBC daytime program. Harris also appeared on talk shows and was twice a guest on "To Tell the Truth". He was a two-time Pan American judo champion, and four-time US National judo champion.Ten Questions with George Harris - by Rebecca Barnett. Published in The Masters, Judo for Adults (2000) Hiroyuki Ikeuchi: Best known for his role as Captain Saito in Space Battleship Yamato Brian Jacks (BBC Superstars): achieved national fame for his outstanding "Gym Test" performances on the BBC programme Superstars and made him a household name in England.Judo Heroes - 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games website His victories in the British and European Superstars lead to the creation of the branded computer games: Brian Jacks Superstar ChallengeBBC MICRO Brian Jacks Superstar Challenge YouTube video. and Brian Jacks Uchi Mata.Uchi Mata Commodore 64 game site In 1984 he briefly appeared on the BBC show "Micro Live", where he set up his new Atari 800XL with his family.Micro Live Brian Jacks follow up - YouTube video. Jacks was the youngest ever British 8th dan in judo; was an Olympic medallist; and competed in over 3000 tournaments. Gene LeBell (stuntman/actor, b.1932 d.2022): LeBell worked on over 350 films and TV shows and was commonly known as "the Godfather of Grappling" and "the Toughest Man Alive".These nicknames were immortalised in the titles of two books about LeBell. In 2002, Gene LeBell was promoted to 10th dan in judo by Jon Bluming in the Netherlands. In February 2005, he was promoted to 9th dan in Traditional Kodokan Judo by the USJJF.Gene LeBell biography - at the USA Traditional Kodokan Judo website (a program of the USJJF) Chuck Norris (actor): Norris's introduction to martial arts took place in South Korea after enlisting in the U.S. Air Force in 1958. He left Korea with a black belt in Tang Soo Do, and a brown belt in judo. In his movies he can often be seen executing O Goshi, Uki Goshi, Seoi Nage, Waki Gatame and Tomoe Nage. Peter Sellers (actor/comedian, b.1925 d.1980): Sellers practiced judo and was appointed President of the London Judo Society in 1962.Judo (edmatrix.us)Biography of Peter Sellers - Time Magazine, 27 April 1962 (prior to being appointed President of the London Judo Society) Valerie Singleton OBE (English television and radio presenter): Singleton started taking judo self-defense classes for women at the Budokwai in London in 2002.Tired of the gym? Belt up for judo - Daily Telegraph, UK, October 2002. Bo Svenson (actor): The lead actor of the original Walking Tall movies is a fifth degree blackbelt in judo. He was also the 1961 Far East Judo Champion in the Heavyweight Division.IMDb entry for Bo Svenson Hillary Wolf (actress): American former child actress, most notable for her role as Megan in the Home Alone series. She was the Junior Judo world champion in 1994, and represented the United States in judo at the Olympics in 1996 and 2000. Bad News Brown (wrestler): Born Allen Coage, he started practicing judo at 15. Started his career at 22, Coage won the Amateur Athletic Union judo championship (heavyweight class) in 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, and 1975, as well as winning the open division in 1970. He also competed in the Pan American Games, winning gold medals in the heavyweight class in 1967 and 1975. He lived in Japan for 2 years (1970 - 1972), farther studying judo at Nihon University before going to the 1976 Summer Olympics where he ultimately won a bronze medal. His victory made him the second American to medal in the sport and the first African American to win a solo Olympic Games medal in a sport other than boxing or track and field. He would eventually become a wrestler, most notably under the ring "Bad News Brown".
Business Matsutaro Shoriki (sports commissioner / media mogul / politician, b.1885 d.1969): owned one of Japan's major daily newspapers, and founded Japan's first commercial television station. He also was elected to the House of Representatives and appointed to the House of Peers. He became Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) first commissioner in 1949, and in 1959, he was the first inductee into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, and is known as the "father of Japanese professional baseball". In 1957, his biography was published in New York, titled Shoriki: Miracle Man of Japan. In 1969 he was awarded judo's highest rank by the Kodokan: 10th dan. Francesco Rulli (businessman / filmmaker): born in Florence is a 4th degree black belt (Yodan), current competitor and member of the NYAC Judo Club and coach for the NYAC's Saturday Morning Program for children up to 13 years old. Francesco Rulli also created the website www.JudoArts.com and his company Film Annex is the main sponsor of the New York Judo Open Cup, co-sponsored with the New York Athletic Club. The New York Open Judo Cup is held once a year and its in invitational tournament for teams from all over the world, in the last three years the winners of this cup were Germany in 2011 and 2012 and France in 2013. - New York Open Judo.
Models
Azra Akın (Turkish 2002 Miss World): won the judo competition in the TV series The Games in 2003. Laetitia Casta (Actress/Model): Casta was the official face of L'Oréal, Dior, and Chanel. She was the Guess? Jeans girl in 1993, and has appeared on over 100 magazine covers. She was Rolling Stone's Hottest Model of the Year. Casta has a brown belt in judo.Laetitia Casta - Biography - at imdb.com Yasmin Le Bon (English supermodel): she and her husband Simon Le Bon practice judo at the Budokwai in London.
Musicians Simon Le Bon (lead singer and lyricist of the pop/rock band Duran Duran): he and his wife Yasmin Le Bon are practicing judo at the Budokwai in London. Billy Thorpe (rock musician of Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs): learned judo from a coach of Anton Geesink in Brisbane, Australia. Thorpe used judo to throw two policemen who attacked him in a violent false arrest in Sydney, Australia in 1964.Sex and Thugs and Rock 'n' Roll (1997) by Billy Thorpe. Xiao Huangqi: Taiwanese singer who learned judo since he was 4 when he lost his eyesight, achieved 2nd-dan black belt, and represented Taiwan in also earned bronze medal in FESPIC Games in Beijing in 1994, and went on to earn a seventh-place finish at 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games
Writers and directors Terence Donovan (photographer and film director b.1936 d.1996): directed Robert Palmer's music video Addicted to Love, which won the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. It was his idea to feature pale skinned models pretending to play backup,Interview with Robert Palmer on a late night talk show. the visual element that made the video so memorable. He was also a black belt in judo and co-authored a popular judo book Fighting Judo with former World Judo Gold medallist Katsuhiko Kashiwazaki.Fighting Judo, by Kashiwazaki and Donovan, 1985 (Amazon.com) Vojislav Stanimirović:(journalist, writer) out of NYC was close friends with Radomir Kovačević and trained him and his youngest son, Pavle, and is responsible for saving his life from a life of criminality. Radomir inspired Pavle to advance in any environment by transferring his education to Private Boarding Schools where students excelled in all sports using Judo as the foundation to build a strong platform. Guy Ritchie (film director): Guy Ritchie trains regularly in both judo and BJJ. He has a black belt in both."I am used to getting a good rumping from the critics. So what?" by Charlotte Edwardes, Daily Telegraph, UK. September 26, 2005.
Politicians