Created in Japan in 1882, judo is a martial art in constant evolution. Established as an Olympic sport since the 1960s, the benefits of judo can be seen in the physical and mental health of its practitioners.
Jigoro Kano, inventor of the sport, defended that judo is an “art in which physical and spiritual strength is used to the maximum”. According to him, the main objectives of judo are to develop self-defense techniques, strengthen the body, physique and mind in an integrated way.
At Instituto Ramacrisna we know the power of transformation that sport has in people’s lives. We develop projects, such as Viva o Esporte, which aim to insert children and young people in situations of social vulnerability in the most diverse modalities, such as judo, ballet, soccer, volleyball, among others. Continue reading to find out more.
Translated from Japanese, the union of the two syllables of the word judo means smooth path. In practice, this is the greatest mission of sport: to bring balance between body and mind.
The fight was inspired by Jiu-Jitsu techniques, which were improved and modified. The modality uses the strength and balance of the opponent against him, without dangerous or aggressive strikes.
Despite being considered a martial art, people of all ages can practice and enjoy the benefits of judo, each age group and gender with their respective criteria.
For example, in childhood, the benefits of judo can be perceived from the child’s first contact with the sport. There is an improvement in discipline, respect for others and even in school performance.
In addition to behavioral issues and mental well-being, judo is very beneficial for the development of the child’s body. Martial art helps psychomotor development and prevents childhood obesity.
From a social point of view, the benefits of judo are numerous. Sport helps thousands of children and adolescents in situations of social vulnerability in Brazil, contributing to greater social inclusion in the country by encouraging sport.
One of Ramacrisna’s sport-focused projects is Viva o Esporte. The program, developed by the Institute in partnership with the city of Betim, benefits more than 4,000 students in various modalities.
The objective of the project is to promote and consolidate sport as a social right, valuing accessibility, intersectoriality and multidisciplinary sports actions.
At Viva o Esporte, activities are available for people of all ages, genders, with and without disabilities, accompanied by specialized professionals. In addition to practicing sports, the students in the project also receive psychological care, a physiotherapist and a social worker..
Among the sports offered by the project, we highlight judo: an award-winning modality of the Institute. In 2022, the Ramacrisna judo team won six medals in the state stage of the Minas Gerais School Games (JEMG)
According to Caliton, a judo instructor at the Instituto Ramacrisna, the benefits of judo go beyond the physical: students realize through sport that there are other possibilities for the future.
In the instructor’s words, “the athletes’ participation opens up a new horizon, with the vision they had of a new city, of a journey. They saw that there are barriers beyond Betim, that the world is beyond our city”
Another point highlighted by Caliton is that the main objective of judo is “to train champions for life, on and off the mat”
Ramacrisna is a non-profit institution that, for more than 60 years, has been developing projects in the area of leisure, culture, professional and learning courses for children, adolescents and adults in social vulnerability in 11 cities in the Metropolitan Region.
In all, more than 2 million people have already had their lives transformed by our projects. Get in touch and collaborate with us.
