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British Judo Association
President George Kerr has been awarded the 10th Dan – making him
only the seventh 10th Dan in the World and the fifth non-Japanese
judoka ever to receive the honour.
Kerr, 72, was presented
with the honour on Saturday by the International Judo Federation
in front of 14,000 judo fans at the Bercy Stadium in Paris, which
is this weekend staging the prestigious Paris Grand Slam.
Shortly after receiving
the honour George said, “I am completely humbled to receive my
10th Dan and slightly over whelmed by the whole thing.
“The moral code in judo
is underpinned by honour and to have your peers and the sport
honouring me with this is an amazing experience and is hard to
get my head around. In the next 20 or 30 years they may only be
another one or two others so I feel incredibly proud”, he added.
It is the Scots second
honour in as many months. In January he was recognised by the
Japanese Government for promoting understanding and friendship
between Japan and the UK. He was awarded the Certificate of Commendation
by the Japanese Government at a ceremony in the Japanese Consulate.
Kerr is only the second
British person ever to receive a judo 10th Dan, the first being
Charles Palmer OBE who died in 2001. Palmer was the first non-Japanese
President of the International Judo Federation, Chairman and then
President of the British Judo Association as well as a period
as Chairman of the British Olympic Association.
The 10th Dan awarded
to Kerr has recognised an illustrious judo career which has seen
him reach the highest level as a coach, player, referee and administrator.
As a player he won the
1957 European Championships in Rotterdam before finishing runner
up three times and with the bronze medal twice. He was a two-time
winner of the British Open Championship both in 1966 and 1968.
Following his retirement
as a judoka, George built his reputation as a World Class coach.
As National Coach to Austrian team he coached Peter Seisenbracher
to win Olympic gold medals in 1984 and 1988 - the only Brit to
ever coach an Olympic gold medallist.
As a referee he is the
only British person to have ever refereed an Olympic final, something
he did twice in Munich and Montreal.
From 1991-1997 Kerr
was Chairman of the British Judo Association, and then Vice President
until Charles Palmer’s death in 2001 when he became President,
a post he still holds today.
He was awarded an International
Judo Federation Gold Medal in 2003 as recognition of his dedication
to judo and was an inaugural member of the Scottish Sports Hall
of Fame in 2002.
George who ran "The
Edinburgh Club" for 40 years, still takes time to teach youngsters
coming into the sport at his centre, Junior Judo in Edinburgh.
“As throughout my career, I continue to teach the traditional
Japanese judo values of honour, discipline, politeness”, he said
recently.
Densign White BJA Chairman,
“I am more than delighted and proud. This is a fantastic honour
for George and British Judo. He has had an amazing career as a
coach, referee, player and administrator. Today he continues to
be an ambassador for Britain and judo around the World. He is
influential at the very highest level whilst still making time
to teach judo to those starting the sport, which is incredible”.
Press Contact:
Emma Griffin
(t) 07875 368495
(e) emma.griffin@britishjudo.org.uk
©
David Finch
George
Kerr being presented with his 10th Dan at the Paris Grand Slam
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