Naohisa Takato Bio: Early Life, Judo, Career & Olympics

This article was last updated by on

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics has everyone exhilarated and pumped up to see the players excel in their field. Acknowledging such enthusiasm, we bring you more information about the Olympic champions. 

One of the players who has outshined his field is the Japanese Judoka, Naohisa Takato. Similarly, with victory in the 2020 Toyko Olympics, the athlete has truly lived to his dreams. 

Naohisa Takato is currently the top-ranking judoka in the extra-lightweight division all around the world.  

The 2020 Olympic Champion, Naohisa Takato.
The 2020 Olympic Champion, Naohisa Takato.

With the victory over the 2013 World Championships, Takato has become one of the judo’s most prominent fighters and opened the door of success. 

Similarly, he also won the 2013 Masters in Tyumen and the prestigious Grand Slams in Paris, Moscow, and Tokyo.

With these achievements, he was ranked No. 2 in the world consecutively for 2013 and 2014. 

Before diving into the Japanese champion’s journey, here are some interesting quick facts.

Naohisa Takato: Quick Facts 

Full name Naohisa Takato (高藤直寿)
Nickname Naohisa Takato 
Birthdate 30 May 1993 
Birthplace Hasuda, Saitama, Japan 
Place of Residence Hadano 
Nationality Japanese
Ethnicity Asian 
Religion Not Mentioned 
Horoscope Gemini 
Age 30 years old
Father’s name Norihiro Takato
Mother’s name Etsuko Takato
Sibling Not mentioned
Sibling Name  Not mentioned 
High School 
  • Sagami Junior High
  • Sagami High School
College Tokai University
Marital status  Married 
Ex-Girlfriends Unknown 
Children One son and one daughter 
Children’s Name  Not Mentioned 
Height In meters: 160 cm 
In feet: 5 ft 3 inches
Weight In kg: 60 kg
In lbs: 130 lbs
Eye Color Black 
Hair Color Black 
Hair Length  Not mentioned 
Beard or Mustache Beardless
Body type Athletic 
Country Japan 
Profession Athletic, Office Worker 
Sport  Judo 
Belt grade  Black belt – V Dan 
Club Name  Park 24 (Japan)
Coach 
  • Satoru Ebinuma (club), Japan
  • Kosei Inoue (national), Japan 
Team  All Japan National Team 
Weight Class  Extra-lightweight 
Preferred Techniques  Kouchi-Gari 
World Ranking Positions Number. 1
Food Habits  Unknown 
Tattoo  Unknown 
Hobbies  Making videos & Playing video games 
Salary  Unknown
Net Worth  $1-$5 million
Social Media  Instagram, Twitter 
Merch Tokyo Olympics 2021
Last Update March, 2024

Naohisa Takato | Early Life and Childhood

The 30 years old Judoka champion, Naohisa Takato, was born on 30 May 1993.

Likewise, he was born to his mother Etsuko Takato and his father Takato in Hasuda, Saitama, Japan. 

At the young age of seven, he initiated his interest in judo. Similarly, during his elementary days, he joined the Nogi-machi judo club. 

He participated in various competitions, sharpening his skills and potential in judo. Likewise, he won various weight divisions throughout his elementary and middle school days.

Takato attended Sagami junior high and high school, where he represented his school in various competitions. Similarly, he won several national titles and the world cadent championships. 

To complete his further studies, in 2012, he attended Tokai University and graduated in 2016. 

Naohisa Takato | Career

The Japanese Judoka, Naohisa Takata, made his presence known internationally in the Under 17 World Championship in Budapest. There, he got the victory with the gold medal. 

Similarly, in the 2012 and 2013 seasons, Takata made his strong presence by winning gold in 7 international tournaments.

Moreover, despite losing in the World Championship at Chelyabinsk, he remained undefeated with the bronze medal.

Likewise, in 2015, Takata enhanced his skills and won the gold medal at two grand slams and world masters.

The defeat in the 2016 Grand Slam Tokyo 

In the 2016 Olympics games, Naohisa Takato represented Japan in the championship. However, he was defeated and failed to claim the throne. 

Moreover, the 2016 Grand Slam Tokyo was his first outing after the Olympics. In his first fight at the championship, he faced Yanislav Gerchev of Bulgaria.

He won his opponent with his form, sode tsurikomi goshi, successfully scoring yuko and waza-ari with the skill.

Similarly, in the second game, his opponent was Korea’s Choi In Hyuk in a deadlocked fight. Although Takato did not earn enough points, he moved through the semi-final due to Choi’s twice penalization. 

Finally, in the final championship, it was an all-Japan bout as he faced Ryuju Nagayama.

Both the players were trained by Minoru Konegawa and had a much-place difference in the world rankings.

Furthermore, Naohisa Takato tried throughout the bout to fight to newaza, but Nagayama’s defense was as strong as an iron wall.

Get to know about Anthony Joshua Net Worth | Houses, Charity & Foundation >>>

Furthermore, at the end of the match, Takato performed ashi guruma but failed to break the defense and was left with a disadvantageous position. 

With the upper hand over Takato, Nagayama used Uchi mata to throw Takato for ippon. Despite the loss, he still took the silver medal home while congratulating Nagayama. 

The victory in the 2017 Grand Slam Paris

Naohisa Takato began his 2017 season with his international competition, the 2017 Grand Slam in Paris. Likewise, this was the first event where he would work on the utilize revised rules of judo. 

In the first fight, his opponent was local Vincent Manquest, and he scored a waza-ari with seoi nage.

After bringing an end to the fight, he earned the highest score with kesa-gatame leading him to round 3.

Naohisa Takato in the 2017 Grand Slam Paris.
Naohisa Takato in the 2017 Grand Slam Paris.

In the quarter-final, he faced against Georgia’s Amiran Papinashvili for 40 seconds as he threw him for ippon with Kochi gari. 

Later, he fought against Azerbaijan’s Orkhana Safarov, the only player to throw Takato for a score with kosota gari

Click here to know about Alexander Gustafsson Bio: Early Life, Career, Stats & Net Worth >>>

Despite such a blow, Takato scored two Waza-ari using kouchi gari and eventually scored ippon, making his way through to the final. 

At the final, Naohisa Takato won the fight by performing waza-ari with kouchi gari and another newaza ippon with Ushiro Yoko Shiho gatame. 

This marked his win at the Paris with the record of victory in 2013 and 2015. Also, with such achievements, he ranked number one in the world and had an all-ippon tournament. 

Naohisa Takato Coach and Fight Style

At the age of seven, Takato began his journey of Judo training at the Nogi Machi Judo center and is now one of Japan’s most promising and prospering athletes. 

Likewise, he is a member of Japan’s judo team and trains under the guidance of the renowned Japanese legend and Judoka, Kosei Inoue. 

Naohisa Takato with the Japanese Team.
Naohisa Takato with the Japanese Team.

Takato follows an approach of the modern style of fighting rather than traditional Japanese judo. Moreover, one of his favorite techniques is the kata guruma. 

Get to know about the rising Olympic star, Chen Aisen Bio: Diving, Tokyo Olympics & Wife >>>

Similarly, as he specializes in drop kata guruma, his technical and physical fighting style has been iconic in the judo industry. 

Naohisa Takato overjoys the country with Japan’s first gold medal in the Tokyo Games.

Naohisa Takato became a first-time Olympic gold medalist on 24th July 2021, Saturday, after defeating Taiwan’s Yang Yung Wei.

Takato won the men’s judo under 60 kg final. Moreover, this achievement marked Japan’s first gold medal in the Tokyo Games. 

Similarly, Funa Tonaki, the Japanese women judoka, claimed silver in the women’s under-48 kg marking Japan’s first game medal.

Both players took the judo field away by the storm and achieved the highest grounds!

Noahisa Takato at Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Naohisa Takato after winning the 60-kg final in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

“I was able to win the first one for Japan. I’m glad that I could help fire up the Japan team by winning the first gold.” Takato said.

Takato won with ippon in the Golden Score extra period after Yang’s call for a penalty.

Yang scored the silver medal despite the defeat, making him the first athlete from Taiwan to win an Olympic judo medal. 

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, there were no fans present to celebrate with him; nevertheless, his family and people all over the country were ecstatic and in high spirits with the achievement. 

With Takato’s victory, it marks the fifth under-60 gold medal, extending the country’s record.

Similarly, the Dubbed Godzilla Japan, the powerful Japanese judo team, is filled with determination and expectation to achieve a gold or silver medal at the Tokyo Games. 

Naohisa Takato’s Net Worth

The Olympic Champion, Naoshia Takato, has a net worth ranging between $1-$5 million.

Moreover, as a professional athlete, the major source of his net worth is through participation and victory in tournaments and sponsorships. 

Similarly, Takato’s net has been increased significantly after his major gold medal achievement in the Olympics.

Naohisa Takato’s Personal Life

The three world champion, Naohisa Takato, has not disclosed any information about his personal life. There is not much information about Takato’s family or his relations.

According to some sources, Naohisa Takato got married in 2014. Later, in the same year, his wife gave birth to a son.

Moreover, the couple is also blessed with a beautiful daughter. 

Naohisa Takato | Social Media 

The Olympic champion, Naohisa Takato, is active on his social media like Instagram and Twitter. The champion is seen updating his followers about the recent Tokyo games.

Similarly, he also updates his daily life activities, and one can find many cute pictures of his pet dog.

Looking at his Instagram, one can also figure out that the champion is a big fan of the anime ‘Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.’

The athlete’s Instagram story consists of drawings of the characters in the anime. 

Click below to give him a follow and know more about Naohisa Takato outside the mat.

Instagram: 71.7k followers with 699 followings

Twitter: 16.9k followers with 362 followings 

FAQs

Is Naohisa Takato popular?

Even outside the mat, Naohisa Takato is quite popular with the most searched judokas in 2015. Similarly, he also earned the top-earning male judoka on the IJF circuit since 2012. 

What are the hobbies of Naohisa Takato?

Although it might be shocking, the Olympic champion has interests and hobbies just like any other person.

In his free time, Takato enjoys making videos and playing video games in the form of refreshments. 

Sanjib Sah
Sanjib Sah
Sanjib Sah is an engineer and content writer passionate about sports and athletics. With a background in engineering and a love for all things active, Sanjib brings a unique perspective to the world of sports writing. Whether he is covering the latest trends in sports technology or sharing tips on improving your game, Sanjib's words are always rooted in a deep appreciation for players' hard work and dedication everywhere. In his free time, you can find him hitting the courts or hitting the trails, always looking for new ways to challenge himself and improve his skills.

Related articles

Comments

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Share article

Latest News