Yukio Endō facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Yukio Endō
Endō at the 1964 Olympics
Personal information
Born	(1937-01-18)January 18, 1937 Yanaisado, Hiroomote, Akita-ken, Japan
Died	March 25, 2009(2009-03-25) (aged 72) Surugadai Nihon University Hospital, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
Height	1.61 m (5 ft 3 in)
Weight	58 kg (128 lb)
Discipline	Men's artistic gymnastics
Medal record Olympic Games Gold 1960 Rome Team Gold 1964 Tokyo All-around Gold 1964 Tokyo Parallel bars Gold 1964 Tokyo Team Gold 1968 Mexico City Team Silver 1964 Tokyo Floor exercise Silver 1968 Mexico City Vault World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Gold 1962 Prague Team Gold 1962 Prague Floor Gold 1966 Dortmund Team Silver 1962 Prague Individual all-around Silver 1962 Prague Rings Silver 1962 Prague Horizontal Bar Silver 1966 Dortmund Floor Silver 1966 Dortmund Horizontal Bar Bronze 1962 Prague Parallel Bar

Yukio Endō (遠藤 幸雄, Endō Yukio, January 18, 1937 – March 25, 2009) was a famous Japanese artistic gymnast. He was born on January 18, 1937, and passed away on March 25, 2009. He won many gold medals at the Olympic Games and World Championships.

Yukio Endō was part of the first Japanese team to win gold in gymnastics at the Summer Olympics in 1960. He also helped his team win gold at the World Championships in 1962. In 1964, he made history by winning Japan's first individual all-around Olympic gold medal. He even carried the flag for Japan at the 1968 Summer Olympics!

Early Life and Education

Yukio Endō was born into a family of pharmacists. His mother passed away when he was nine years old. He went to Hiroomote Elementary School.

After elementary school, he studied at Kubota Junior High School and Akita Technical High School. He then went on to study at the Tokyo University of Education, which is now called the University of Tsukuba. He graduated from university in 1959. Later, he worked as an assistant teacher for physical education at Nihon University.

Amazing Gymnastics Career

Yukio Endō was a very successful gymnast. He won gold medals with the Japanese team in three different Olympic Games:

• 1960 Rome
• 1964 Tokyo
• 1968 Mexico City

At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, he won two more gold medals on his own. He won gold in the parallel bars event. He also won the individual all-around competition, which means he was the best gymnast across all events.

World Championship Success

Endō also had great success at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.

• At the 1962 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Prague, he won six individual medals. This included a gold medal in the floor exercise. Japan also won the team competition that year.
• At the 1966 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Dortmund, he won two individual silver medals. Again, Japan won the team competition.

Endō in 1966

Yukio Endō was also a four-time champion in the all-around competition at the All-Japan Artistic Gymnastics Championships. This shows how consistently good he was in Japan.

Life After Gymnastics

After the 1968 Olympics, Yukio Endō stopped competing as a gymnast. He became a gymnastics coach. He later became a professor at Nihon University.

He also coached the national gymnastics team at the 1972 Olympics. He was a director for the Japanese Olympic Committee. He was also chosen twice to be the vice-president of the Japan Gymnastic Association.

In 1996, he received the Japanese Emperor's Medal. This is a special award in Japan. In 1999, he was added to the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame. This means he is recognized as one of the greatest gymnasts of all time.

Yukio Endō passed away on March 25, 2009.

See also

• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists