Kaori Matsumoto facts for kids
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| Nationality | Japanese | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 11 September 1987 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | Not recognized as a date. Years must have 4 digits (use leading zeros for years < 1000). (aged Error: Need valid year, month, day) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Judoka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Judo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | –57 kg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World finals |  (2010, 2015) |
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| Regional finals |  (2008, 2010) |
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| Olympic finals |  (2012) |
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Medal record
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| Updated on 24 May 2023. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kaori Matsumoto (松本 薫, Matsumoto Kaori, born 11 September 1987 in Kanazawa) is a famous retired Japanese judoka. A judoka is an athlete who practices judo, a martial art and sport. She is known for winning many medals, including an Olympic gold.
Contents
Kaori Matsumoto's Judo Journey
Starting Judo
Kaori Matsumoto began learning judo when she was just 6 years old. The school she went to, Iwai Judo Juku, also taught wrestling once a week. This helped her develop a special forward-leaning stance in judo, similar to wrestling.
As a young student, she won medals in national wrestling competitions. In judo, she won her first national tournament when she was in her last year of junior high school.
Favorite Techniques and Challenges
Kaori's favorite judo moves include Kosoto gari, Sode tsurikomi goshi, and Newaza. These are all different ways to throw or control an opponent in judo.
During her career, she faced some injuries. She broke her right shoulder in high school and her nose and right elbow in college. She also hurt her right hand during a championship in 2009. After these challenges, she learned how important it was to eat healthy and take care of her body.
Winning Streak
After focusing on her health, Kaori went on an amazing winning streak. She won seven international championships in a row! This included big events like the World Masters in January 2010 and the Grand Slam Tokyo in December 2010.
World and Olympic Success
In 2010, Kaori Matsumoto won the gold medal at the World Judo Championships in the lightweight (57 kg) division. The next year, in August 2011, she earned a bronze medal at the World Championships in Paris. She also won another gold medal at the Grand Slam Tokyo in December.
The year 2012 was very special for Kaori. She won gold medals at the Masters in January and the Düsseldorf Grand Prix in February. Later that year, she competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Kaori won the gold medal in the women's 57 kg judo final. This was Japan's first gold medal at the 2012 Olympics and their only gold in judo that year!
Life After the Olympics
After her big win at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Kaori Matsumoto started doing volunteer work. She enjoyed helping children in Japan. She even lent her voice to a character in the 2013 movie Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods. The character was a motorcycle policewoman inspired by Kaori herself!
In 2015, she continued her success by winning another gold medal. This was at the 2015 World Judo Championships in Kazakhstan, again in the under 57 kg women's division.
At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, she won a bronze medal, adding another Olympic medal to her collection.
Kaori Matsumoto officially retired from judo in 2019. She is married and has two children.
See also
In Spanish: Kaori Matsumoto para niños
