Founded in 1991 as part of social contribution activities during the 70th anniversary of the company founding, the Komatsu Women's Judo Club is celebrating its 35th year. Over this period, including alumnae, about 100 athletes have competed in tournaments worldwide. The club has actively engaged in promoting and developing judo by welcoming foreign athletes and providing judo instruction both domestically and internationally.
The 2025 World Judo Championships were held in Budapest, Hungary, from June 13 to 19, 2025, with Komatsu athlete Kurena Ikeda competing in the women’s 78 kg category. Making her World Championships debut, Ikeda won her opening bout by ippon with okuri-eri-jime. Building on this momentum, she scored with soto-makikomi to win her second-round bout. In the quarterfinal, she was unable to capitalize on an opportunity in ne-waza and failed to score before conceding a waza-ari late in the contest, resulting in a narrow defeat. Regaining her composure for the repechage, she scored a yuko with her signature tomoe-nage to secure victory. She then won the bronze medal contest by ippon with yoko-shiho-gatame, earning an impressive bronze medal in her first appearance at the World Championships. This marked the first medal won by a Japanese judoka in the women’s 78 kg category at the World Championships in four editions, further establishing Ikeda as Japan’s leading athlete in the category.
At the Tokyo Grand Slam held in December, Kurena Ikeda won the gold medal in the women’s 78 kg category, successfully claiming her second consecutive title. Mao Izumi won bronze in the women’s 78 kg category, while Wakaba Tomita earned bronze in the women’s over-78 kg category.
In Japan, Mao Izumi won her first title in the women’s 78 kg category at the All Japan Selected Judo Championships held in Fukuoka in April.
The Komatsu women’s judo team continues to coach the local Komatsu Junior Judo Club while holding judo clinics in Japan and other parts of the world, helping to promote judo and support the development of the next generation of children.
In FY2025, Komatsu held the inaugural Komatsu JUDO CUP, a tournament for elementary school students, at the Komatsu Soshi Dojo. The event was filled with smiles from local children. A judo clinic was also held at the Koriyama Plant Fair in September, where team members enjoyed interacting with local children by teaching them judo techniques and giving them an opportunity to hold their medals. In December, the team participated in the Ishikawa Judo Federation’s year-end practice session and trained together with elementary, junior high, and high school students from Ishikawa Prefecture. The Komatsu women’s judo team will continue to support the recovery and reconstruction of Ishikawa Prefecture through judo. The team will also continue its activities to promote judo.
