Judo is one of the most popular sports in the world (unfortunately, not in the US), but we do have some of the most highly skilled athletes on the planet. And fortunately, for us, they are very accessible and are always glad to share the mat and their knowledge with us. This past weekend, we hosted Shinjiro Sasaki -- he was a top Japanese judo player, but was just shy of qualifying for the Olympic team. He decided to move to the US (with just pennies in his pocket and almost no English), and start his own dojo. This was probably 15 years ago. But now, he's one of the most respected coaches in the US. His judo is explosive and innovative. He spent the weekend here, and presented so many techniques -- that by the end, everyone found something that they really liked and were able to apply it during randori. So cool. Most of the dojo was present, and Shinjiro really enjoyed the students. Looking forward to when he comes back.
