Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Kyuzo Mifune

I have to apologize. I name-checked Kyuzo Mifune in a post over the weekend. I should've included a link to his Wikipedia biography for those of you who are not familiar with the God of Judo.

Check out that anecdote at the end of the wiki page. I'm sure you'll note how these two Judo legends stack their opponents like cord wood. But pay very close attention to the fact that Mifune dispatches his share with blows. There was a lot more to Pre-World War II Judo than throwing for points.

How are we to properly judge the giants of today if we don't know the giants of the past? And now, the next time some wiseguy asks who would win in a match between Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris, you can respond, "Chuck Norris, of course. But: who wins a match between Kyuzo Mifune and Rickson Gracie?"

No comments: