Judo discussion and investigation of selected topics by Ronald Desormeaux

Judo Ron 7

Tribute to a Canadian Judo Pioneer: Bernard Gauthier

The Canadian judo history begins in the 1914 with the arrival of Japanese visitors and
settlers on the West Coast. Judo evolved quickly from the commitments and dedication of
Japanese teachers the like of Steven Shigetaka Sasaki who settled in the Vancouver area.
In 1932, Professor Jigoro Kano came to Vancouver to reinforce his Kodokan Judo’s
principles amongst the established teachers association.

The Second World War was catastrophic to the expansion of judo on the western coast as
many of the Japanese families were forced to relocate to interior transit camps. Judo
activities nevertheless survived the ordeal and its expansion across Canada took place
over the next few years. After the war, the influence of Europeen judo came about.
Britain and France contributed to the judo expansion by sending judo and ju-jitsu experts
to teach the armed forces or the police units. Teachers trained by Sensei Koizumi and
Kawaishi made substantial contributions to the expansion of judo in the Eastern parts of
Canada. The judo brotherhood expanded without a consolidated or formal organizational
framework and continued to establish its ramifications in recreational halls, private clubs,
town halls and schools.

In the early 1940, a young French Canadian judoka by the name of Bernard Henri
Gauthier born in Hull Québec in 1926 began a tremendous organizational building effort
to promote a national judo organization that would unite all judokas under one federally
recognized body. For a period of 20 years, he actively participated in the expansion of
martial arts studies in Canada. He became the President of the first Canadian Judo
Federation which obtained official recognition world wide.

Mr Gauthier made a substantial contribution to the development of judo in Canada and

was a major pioneer in the creation of the Pan-American Judo Union. He served as the
first president of the Canadian judo Federation from 1949 – 1960. He was one of the four
pillars of the Pan-American Judo Union along with MM Carlos Chaves or Argentina,
Carlos de Lejarza of Cuba and Donn.F. Draeger of the United States of America.
Together, they drafted the first constitution of the Union and Mr Gauthier later served as
the Vice-President during the period 1952-3-54.

In collaboration with other officials of the international judo community, he introduced

the formation of several judo leagues for the expansion of judo throughout the country
and abroad. He initiated the first cycle of International team competitions between
Canada and other countries such as: Cuba, United States, England and France. Mr
Gauthier maintained continuous liaison with the International Judo Federation and the
affiliated national delegations for the purpose of exchanging on technical and
administrative matters.

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 Judo discussion and investigation of selected topics by Ronald Desormeaux

In 1956, he represented Canada at the International Judo Congress in Tokyo and

participated in the deliberations to compose the first IJF statutes and regulations.
Mr Gauthier asserted the presence of Canadian Judo while attending the First Canadian
Sports conference in Ottawa 1951. He served as a member of the executive board of the
Canadian Sports council from 1952-54 and held the positions of secretary and treasury
for the Canadian Amateur Sports from 1951-55.

Mr Gauthier made a substantive contribution to the expansion of Judo by being able to

draft the Charters and the Incorporation documents for the Canadian Judo Federation and
registering it with the Government of Canada in December1949. The Statutes of the
Canadian Judo Federation served as the background to the subsequent replacement
national organization known as the Canadian Kodokan Black Belt Association in the late
1959 to later be known as Judo Canada.

He was the author of a first book under the title Canadian and American Modern Judo in
1952. This first book intended to demystify the concepts of judo to the Canadian
audience and simultaneously inform the World about judo activities in Canada. In his
prime years, Mr Gauthier was a competitor and team captain for several Provincial and
national teams. He participated in the First Pan American Championship in Havana in
1952. He participated in the Argentina Championship in 1955 and he was the Canadian
delegate to the First World Judo Championships in Tokyo in 1956.

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 Judo discussion and investigation of selected topics by Ronald Desormeaux

Mr Gauthier was an excellent teacher and leader. He was instrumental in opening about
30 Judo Clubs and graduated over 50 black belts instructors. In the course of his teaching,
several of his students achieved national competition ranking.

He taught judo and self-defense techniques to members of the Royal Canadian Mounted
Police, the Military Police, The Canadian Air Forces, The Salvation Army, the Municipal
Police forces, the Ottawa University Physical Education Department, the Prison and
Penitentiary guards and at private civilian dojos in Canada and the United States.

Mr Gauthier was a great communicator of the Judo philosophy. In his constant desire to
broadcast the judo way of life, he participated in numerous radio talk shows in both
official languages throughout Canada. In 1956, he gave a short interview to the Japanese
radio station and the international press while participating in the 1956 World
Championships.

Radio-Canada TV interviewed Mr Gauthier on numerous occasions pertaining to judo

championships, the expansion of judo and its concepts. In 1953, he participated in the
development of a technical judo film made by the US Marine Corps under the
sponsorship of Major Donn Draeger. In 1954, he led the National film Board of Canada
initiative to produce a short film on the Aesthetics and psychology of judo called “Judo
Jinko”. He designed and maintained several Judo newsletters and Pan-Canadian judo
bulletins for several years.

In 1965, he made three judo and self-defense films in collaboration with the National
Film Board and the Canadian Penitentiary authorities. Both the Federal and Provincial
training institutions have since used these films. They are intended for the use of security
guards and police departments for their training and riot control preventive security
systems.

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 Judo discussion and investigation of selected topics by Ronald Desormeaux

He was the first Canadian instructor and maybe the first world sensei to try to develop a
new and systemic approach to teach judo to persons with handicaps. He elaborated a
special course to teach blind persons for the Canadian Institute for the Blind in Ottawa.
He undertook the responsibility to teach a first group of six blind persons and lead them
to a successful participation in regional shiai. New contest rules and safety measures were
introduced to accommodate this kind of participation.

His activity gained more support and the club membership blossomed. His initiative
caught the attention of Mr H. Plée of the International Judo Federation who later
produced an essay on this Canadian initiative in the IJF periodical.

Mr Gauthier held the rank of Godan awarded by both the Kodokan Judo Institute of
Japan and by Judo-Canada in 1985. Mr Gauthier organized and participated in over 200
public demonstrations, tournaments and championships towards the emancipation of Judo
in Canada.

In 1954, he was awarded the Gil-O Julien trophy for the best French-Canadian athlete in
Ontario-Québec. Judo-Québec made him a member of its Hall of fame as a pioneer in
1990. He was the third Canadian judoka to be induced in the Pan-Am Judo Federation as
a builder, following the outstanding work and devotion of Sensei Frank Minoru Hatashita
and Raymond Damblant.