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In the 63 kg category of Women’s Judo at the 2004 Athens Olympics, Mr. Tanimoto won the gold medal and hugged Coach Koga with a smile.
“I have been sick since 2020, but I have always been a cheerful teacher at emails, letters and conversations. I hate to bother and worry around me, and I don’t trust people. I was thinking that I would definitely be okay …”
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The sudden news of Toshihiko Koga (53 years old), 71 kg gold medalist in Judo at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, shocked the Japanese. Ayumi Tanimoto (39), a disciple of Mr. Koga and a gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 63 kg judo class at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, says she still doesn’t feel it.
The relationship between Mr. Tanimoto and Mr. Koga was exactly a three-legged race. Koga, who missed the Sydney 2000 Olympics, became Japan’s women’s coach. At that time, I taught Mr. Tanimoto, a freshman at the University of Tsukuba.
“I’ve been ‘that man’ since I met him. Anyway, he was a dedicated person to people. If there was a girl who seemed to be in pain during practice, he would cheer her on. Soften him up and make a circle. from training with the teacher, I couldn’t stop laughing. “
Mr. Tanimoto became the representative for the 2001 World Championships in Munich and requested Mr. Koga’s guidance until the 2004 Athens Olympics.
“He used to say, ‘Judo training is a dog walk.’ Instead of forcibly pulling the rod in the direction you want to go, you looked from behind and let the dog go where you wanted to walk, and you made a mistake. It was a teaching method like pulling a little on the leash when I was about to go steering. “
The fact that Tanimoto won the gold medal in all of the one, which is the second consecutive Olympic Games, is a symbol of “Koga-ism”.
“There are many words that have stuck in my heart, like” magic words “. In the first tournament, my teacher asked me:” Where are you aiming this time? “When I replied,” I can’t win a guy like that. I want you to be prepared to aim for a gold medal. Being prepared means being prepared to lose and live in yourself. “
The teacher regretted the Seoul Olympics (Mr. Koga lost the third round) and the hellish pain of wanting to die. He told me that he was prepared with the word “decision.”
Mr. Tanimoto is currently serving as the leader and director of the Tokyo Olympic Games Organizing Committee.
“When I became an instructor, the teacher said, ‘It’s a good game if the players show the skills of the instructor.’ So we think it was a good match.
I was glad to know that I was blessed with compatibility. I’m like the first disciple so I guess he taught various players after that and thought so. It was often said, “If you ask me one (from a player), be prepared to answer ten.”
He never bends his belief and never shakes his axis, that was Koga-san’s way of life.
“Becoming a nice person” was a habit, and he was a person who cared about supporting and following the players and had nothing to do with corporal punishment.
It is said that “a first class athlete cannot be a first class leader”, but the teacher was a great player and a great leader. Every word that I learned from my teacher will be a guide … I have to connect with the teaching that “judo is a place for human formation”.
This time, Mr. Tanimoto is said to have been recalled again in response to the news from Mr. Koga.
“I was contacted by several players, but when they said, ‘Who was it that spoke to me when I was having a hard time?’ They all said, ‘After all, it was Mr. Koga.’
The lonely player is quickly spotted and casually approaches. I thought again: “Not only me, but the teacher saved a lot of players.”
In addition, many condolences were received not only from the world of judo but also from various fields.
“I think this is also the personality of the teacher. He is like someone who really lived for others. When I retired, I said: ‘A heart that can act for others. That is the challenge for the future.” I’d like to find the answer myself. “
Finally, Mr. Tanimoto added cheerfully with a tearful voice.
“Actually, I haven’t taken a picture with my teacher. This time I searched the whole house, but I don’t think I should have taken it.
When I was active, it was not the time to take pictures casually, and it was always with me … That’s the most disappointing thing for me … I’m biting my memories looking at the news photos of the Olympics.
Photo / AFP / Afro
(Weekly FLASH Issue April 13, 2021)
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