Masao Takahashi
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Mas |
| Born | 1929 (age 88–89) Stave Falls, British Columbia, Canada |
| Residence | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada |
| Sport | |
| Country | Canada |
| Sport | Judo |
| Rank | Hachidan (8th dan) |
| Club | Takahashi Dojo |
| Updated on 3 September 2012. | |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Judo | ||
Representing  Japan
|
||
| World Championships | ||
 |
1979 Paris | Middleweight |
Masao Takahashi (born 1929) is a Canadian judoka, author, coach, and founder of the Takahashi School of Martial Arts (Est. 1969) in Ottawa, Ontario. He has been involved in the Japanese martial art judo for more than 70 years, and is currently ranked hachi-dan (eighth-degree black belt), making him one of the highest ranked judoka in Canada. In 2002 he was decorated by the Emperor of Japan with the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Rosette, in recognition of his service to improving the status of Japanese-Canadians through his lifelong commitment to the promotion and development of Judo in Canada. He was inducted into the Judo Canada Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2005 Takahashi co-authored a book, Mastering Judo, with his family.
Born in Stave Falls, British Columbia, Takahashi moved to the Kitsilano neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia with his family in the late 1930s, where his father worked in a saw mill and his mother opened a day care centre. He was an outstanding athlete in high school, but his activities were limited following the outbreak of the Second World War. In March 1942, the government forced the family to give up their belongings and relocate as part of the internment of Japanese-Canadians due to fears that they would act against Canada on behalf of Japan. The Takahashis were moved to Raymond, Alberta to work as cheap labour in the sugar beet industry. The family stayed on a farm in a small house with no plumbing, and the children were prohibited from going to school. Takahashi and his friends continued to practice Judo during their years in Raymond under Yoshio Katsuta's supervision at a small Japanese Buddhist church. After the war was over, he returned to high school and graduated in 1948. In 1949, Takahashi joined the Royal Canadian Air Force, where he spent the next 22 years of his life. He retired from the Air Force in 1969 and began a second career by opening his dojo in Ottawa.
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