Athletes
Yasuhiro Yamashita
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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.
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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 Cross-Tradition Connections
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