Shigetaka Sasaki

Shigetaka "Steve" Sasaki was a Canadian judoka and founder of the first Judo club in Canada. After establishing the Tai Iku Dojo in Vancouver in 1924, Sasaki and his students opened several branch schools in British Columbia. In 1940, however, all dojos were shut down by the government and their Japanese members forced into internment camps due to fears that Japanese-Canadians would act against Canada on behalf of Japan during the Second World War. After the War was over, the government encouraged internees to relocate, and many of Sasaski's students went on to establish their own dojos across Canada. Sasaki was inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 1986 as a 'builder'.