Judo. It’s a Japanese word known the world over, regardless of boundary, language or nationality, which conjures its own images much like hearing sushi or sayonara. In the world of sports, it is Japan’s earliest contribution to world athletics. What started in the late nineteenth century as safer form for practicing Japanese “unarmed” martial arts became a a sporting event within Japan and quickly around the world thanks to a handful of individuals. What better metaphor is there for the turbulent emotions of a young lady in high school who wants to shop, date and learn the makings of a good housewife and her grandfather’s aspirations of her claiming Olympic and national victories on the mat than the very pushing and pulling required for executing the majority of Judo’s throws? Cross-generational, cross-gender and cross-mat goals charge head-to-head in Yawara!: A Fashionable Judo Girl.

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