Legendary Ryoko Tani touches Japanese elite athletes

Former judoka Ryoko Tani, renowned for winning medals at five consecutive Olympics, delivered a one-hour speech on Tuesday in Tokyo before approximately 30 Japanese female judoka bound for the Paris Olympics. "To succeed at the Olympics, you must persevere with your judo until the very end," she emphasized. "You have the potential to reach the pinnacle of the world. I have no doubt you will excel."

Between the 1992 and 2008 Olympics, Tani secured two gold, two silver, and one bronze medal in the 48-kilogram category.

During her speech, one of the young judoka was moved to tears upon seeing the charismatic Tani for the first time.

At 48 years old, Tani also recounted how she would begin practicing her Olympic routine, from waking up to going to bed, approximately one month before the competition.

Uta Abe, who aims to defend her 52 kg gold in Paris, commented, "I want to approach everything with the same positivity as her. It was truly an enriching hour."

Ryoko Tani profile:

Ryoko Tani is perhaps the best female judoka ever in judo. The Japanese lightweight was seven times World Champion U48kg and won two Olympic titles in 2000 and 2004. She lost the finals of 1992 and 1996. She is superstar and politician in Japan. She won the Tournoi de Paris and German Open in Munich in 1993.