Pillars of Judo Development and Patriotic Martyr under the Loving Care

In the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, everyone can devote his strength, wisdom and enthusiasm to the development of the country and lead a worthwhile life on the road of that.

Chairman Kim Jong Il said:

"He had been subjected to all manner of maltreatment and humiliation in a foreign land for the sole reason that he was a Korean. It was only in the embrace of the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung that he could dedicate all his strength and wisdom to developing national sports as a true sportsman and add lustre to his career as a world-famous judoist and a competent judo coach."

Being subjected to all sorts of maltreatment and contempt in Japan for the reason that he was a Korean, Mr. Ko Thae Mun could lead a genuine life as a world-known judo superstar and a competent judo coach only when he came to the embrace of President Kim Il Sung.

Mr. Ko Thae Mun left his hometown in search of a way to live and he managed to settle down in Japan, an exotic land in those days when the country was under Japanese colonial rule.

He was despised and humiliated everywhere for the reason that he was a Korean, so he thought that it was the best way to build up his strength because he could not pour out his increasing resentment and entered the judo world.

When he was in Japan, he was keen on training, thinking that no Japanese would have despised and humiliated him if he had become famous in judo, so his Judo skill reached such a high level that the Japanese were surprised.

But his naive ideas failed and could not be realized.

When he became a considerable player in the field of judo and other heavy competitions, the Japanese reactionaries threatened him to be defeated deliberately by Japanese players or attacked him in the backstreet with a knife if he didn't do what they told him to do.

President Kim Il Sung liberated the country and repatriated Koreans in Japan. In the homeland, his hope was valued so he was appointed as a judo coach and was provided with all conditions for training and life.

Indeed, if he had not been in the embrace of the President, the motherland, he would not have been alive.

On the sixth day after Kim Sin Rak (Rikidozan), who was of his age and friend and who spent the day and night of training together, was murdered by the Japanese reactionaries, he came to the embrace of the motherland.

His desire to take part in the sports arena with the dignity of Koreans even once in the exotic land came true only when he came to the embrace of the President, the motherland.

The fatherland valued his patriotic mind as he bought judo suits and sporting apparatuses when he returned home and valued his feats of training promising judo players, so that he was involved in the sports delegation to take part in GANEFO (the Games of New Emerging Forces) together with the players.

Though the President was busy taking care of the overall work of the country, he personally met the sports delegation and showed deep trust in them to do well and to demonstrate the honour of the country that time.

Although they took part in the international games for the first time, they achieved such surprising successes that they defeated the rivals and won several medals including gold medals as they keep the trust of the President in their minds.

The President gave a feast in celebration of their successes and poured a toast of love to them who came back after glorifying the honour of the country.

Chairman Kim Jong Il told him who was in deep emotion that it was not long since we started judo in our country but the judo players did well this time and glorified the honour of the country by winning a brilliant victory in the matches, adding that it was associated with the hidden merits of the judo coach and the country would never forget him who was really patriotic.

He continued that the foundation for developing judo had then been laid in our country, and we should actively develop judo in the future with the judo coaches and judo players as the parents of judo, who had returned home glorifying the honour of the motherland in GANEFO.

Receiving the words of Chairman Kim Jong Il, that were more than he deserved and were filled with the trust, so he shouted to himself into Japan.

"Look. What trust I, Ko Thae Mun received, who was a rolling stone in Japan. Who else in the world would give me such deep trust?"

Under the great trust of Chairman Kim Jong Il, the Judo Association was formally organized in the country in January, Juche 53 (1964) and he became the first chairman of the Judo Association of the DPRK.

Chairman Kim Jong Il put forward him as a patriotic martyr saying that the life of the sportsman who devoted himself to the Party and the leader, the country and the nation will shine forever when Ko Thae Mun died.

As everything cannot be revived without the rays of the sun, the happy life of our people is unthinkable without the care of the President and the Chairman.

That is why our people proudly say that the embrace of the fatherland is precisely that of the President and the Chairman.