Jon Bluming and judo?

[Patrick Skerry]

Jon Bluming: Who is this obscure Dutchman and what was his connection to judo?

 

[Steve Scott]

Patrick,
I'm no expert on Jon Bluming, but he was an interesting individual in his hey day. He is a big, very skilled martial arts man from the Netherlands and he trained at the Kodokan and the top dojos in Japan in the late 1950s and early 1960s if I'm not mistaken. He trained with Donn Draeger, Anton Geesink, Inokuma, Kaminaga and all the top guys of the era.
If you read some old issues of BLACK BELT magazine (from the 1960s and 1970s) there are some articles on Jon Bluming. Also, he's mentioned in some of Donn Draeger's judo books I believe. If I remember right (from reading about it), he had some political differences with the judo federation in the Netherlands and doesn't do judo anymore.
He also affiliated with Mas Oyama in the Kyokushinkai karate system and is a high ranking karate man as well as his judo credentials.
I think he's still alive and doing security work for the roal family in the Netherlands. He would have to be in his mid to late 60s I would imagine.
That's about all I know about him. Definitely an interesting part of judo's history.
Steve

 

[hardheadjarhead]

He's hardly obscure...more of a legend.

http://www.realfighting.com/0102/jonblubk.htm

He studied both Judo and Kyokushin...and was one of the toughest men of his day.



Regards,


Steve

 

[Patrick Skerry]

Patrick,
I'm no expert on Jon Bluming, but he was an interesting individual in his hey day. He is a big, very skilled martial arts man from the Netherlands and he trained at the Kodokan and the top dojos in Japan in the late 1950s and early 1960s if I'm not mistaken. He trained with Donn Draeger, Anton Geesink, Inokuma, Kaminaga and all the top guys of the era.
If you read some old issues of BLACK BELT magazine (from the 1960s and 1970s) there are some articles on Jon Bluming. Also, he's mentioned in some of Donn Draeger's judo books I believe. If I remember right (from reading about it), he had some political differences with the judo federation in the Netherlands and doesn't do judo anymore.
He also affiliated with Mas Oyama in the Kyokushinkai karate system and is a high ranking karate man as well as his judo credentials.
I think he's still alive and doing security work for the roal family in the Netherlands. He would have to be in his mid to late 60s I would imagine.
That's about all I know about him. Definitely an interesting part of judo's history.
Steve

Thank you Steve,

It was those "political differences with the judo federation in the Netherlands" which made me curious about the man. What kind of differences could those have been to have someone totally give up judo and go into another martial art?

I'm going to send away for his book thanks to the gentleman [hardheadjarhead] from a different post who supplied the book information.

 

[Patrick Skerry]

Here is some more information on the very interesting Jon Bluming:

http://www.realfighting.com/0102/jonblumi.htm


I also have his book: The History of Jon Bluming: From street punk to 10th Dan, and I would highly recommend it.

 

[Patrick Skerry]

Thank you Steve,

It was those "political differences with the judo federation in the Netherlands" which made me curious about the man. What kind of differences could those have been to have someone totally give up judo and go into another martial art?

I'm going to send away for his book thanks to the gentleman [hardheadjarhead] from a different post who supplied the book information.

Those "political differences with the judo federation in the Netherlands" I have been able to find in MARTIAL MUSINGS (c. 1999) by Robert W. Smith, that:

"When he [Bluming] returned to Holland in 1961, he planned to participate in the World Judo Championships in Paris. Because of hate and bickering between the Dutch amateur group headed by Bluming and the so-called professional organizations headed by Geesink, Bluming was side tracked and not permitted to enter. Therefore, Bluming stopped competing and turned his energies into training future Dutch hopefuls, amongthem judo champion Willem Ruska and three-time world sambo champion Chris Dolman. Bluming also got involved in free-fighting in 1966" (p. 110).

 

[dosandojang]

9th Dan in Judo and 10th Dan in Kyokushin, right?

 

[Patrick Skerry]

9th Dan in Judo and 10th Dan in Kyokushin, right?

Yes, that is correct. But I don't know what organization awarded him the 9th dan in Judo? Bluming received his 1st, 2nd, and 3rd dans in Holland, his 4th dan from Korea and Japan, his 6th and 7th dan from an individual Japanese Judo sensei, but I'm not sure where he received the rest of his Judo ranks. He also has a 4th dan from the Korean Yudo Association.

Anton Geesink received his 10th dan in Judo from the International Judo Federation (IJF), and not from Japan. There is some contention of rank recognition with the IJF and the AJJF (All Japan Judo Federation); they don't see eye-to-eye on a lot of things, particularly the blue gi.

 

[dosandojang]

I know! I have ties with the KJA (8th Dan Seok Pil Jang) and the old KYA too (Sensei/Kwang Jang Nim Chambers, 9th Dan old KYA). Politics and Ego are always the problems in this world...