There are some great up and comers from Japan in Judo. Shonei Ono is one of the already on the top up and comer in the world of Judo. His style is very systematic and very tenacious. Not to mention he is always entertaining to watch with his dynamic throws from every position.

A Rio olympic gold medalist, he was born in 1992 and has been practicing Judo since the age of 7.  In addition to winning the olympics, Ono has won the world championships in 2013 and 2015. This prized fighter still has a long career on the mat ahead of him. It will be fun and interesting to watch him in action in the coming years.

What I like about Shohei Ono is not only his physical ability and skill but also his philosophy to take on a challenge and display his best in competition. From what I’ve learned about him and his style is that he pursues the ippon finish while holding on to the importance of winning the match. His speed seems to be his biggest asset as he hits his dominant uchi mata throw on many opponents. More than being a one move master, he seems to be able to transition from move to move, attack to attack and confuse his opponents defenses. Essentially his relentless attacks forces his opponent to defend one move but to give up position for a follow up attack.