Yasuhiro Yamashita is a retired Japanese judoka considered by many the greatest judo competitor ever. He won 203 consecutive matches over nearly eight years and remained undefeated throughout his career against opponents from outside Japan. His single Olympic appearance, at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, ended in gold despite competing through a torn calf muscle. He retired in 1985 at 28, later became chairman of the Japanese Olympic Committee, and was elected to the International Olympic Committee in January 2020. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Career HighlightWon 203 consecutive matches, with 7 draws, from October 1977 until his June 1985 retirement, remaining undefeated his entire career against non Japanese opponents. 1 Career HighlightWon four World Championship gold medals across the heavyweight and openweight categories in 1979, 1981 and 1983, and was promoted to ninth dan in 2022. 1 Career HighlightWon Olympic gold in the openweight division at the 1984 Los Angeles Games while competing through a torn right calf muscle suffered in an earlier preliminary bout. 1 Classification
Competition Category FAQs
In which event did Yasuhiro Yamashita win his Olympic gold medal?
Open class judo in 1984.
Yasuhiro Yamashita won gold in the open class for men in judo at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Olympedia records that gold as his only Olympic medal, with no silver or bronze.
Connections
Competed In
Source Wikipedia, Yasuhiro Yamashita
Long-Form Articles
Plays
Judo, Sports Source Wikipedia, Yasuhiro Yamashita
In the Other Atlases
Nationality
Also in Geography Atlas: the nationality of this subject.
Sources
1. Wikipedia, Yasuhiro Yamashita
Wikimedia FoundationIntroduction
He retired from competitive judo on 17 June 1985 after a remarkable career where he won five gold medals in international competitions and marked 203 consecutive victories (with 7 draws in-between) until his retirement where he went undefeated his entire career against non-Japanese wrestlers. He received the Japanese National Prize of Honor on 9 October 1984. He is considered by many to be the greatest judoka ever.
- Plays: Judo
- Competed In: Olympic Games
View the Source 2. Wikidata: Yasuhiro Yamashita
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