Neil Ohlenkamp
Judo Background
"It has been said that a person may have ten years of experience, or one year of experience repeated ten times." -- Yukiso Yamamoto
Mr. Ohlenkamp holds a seventh degree black belt in Judo with over 55 years of training and experience as a competitor, instructor, U.S. team coach, and tournament official. He has been awarded black belt rank certificates by the United States Judo Association (USJA), United States Judo Federation (USJF), Southern California Black Belt Association (Nanka Yudanshakai), and the Kodokan Judo Institute in Tokyo, Japan. He was promoted to Shodan, first degree black belt, by the USJF in 1975, and by the Kodokan in 1976.
Mr. Ohlenkamp is the author of the groundbreaking full-color instructional book Judo Unleashed published in 2006 by McGraw-Hill in the Americas and Black Belt: Judo Skills and Techniques by New Holland Publishing in the rest of the world. More information about his other book titles.
Mr. Ohlenkamp is widely recognized as a leader in the teaching and promotion of Judo for sport and self defense. He began learning Judo in 1968 and has been teaching Judo classes since 1973. He was head instructor of the Encino Judo Club from 1985 to 2019 responsible for classes in multiple locations teaching hundreds of students each year. He developed highly successful Judo, jujutsu and self defense programs for various health clubs, churches, schools, community centers, youth centers, and recreation centers in Southern California. He has trained athletes and coaches in national conferences, training camps, seminars and clinics at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, and other cities in the United States, Costa Rica, Belize, Korea, Japan, France and England. He has trained thousands of recreational Judo players and martial artists, including many blackbelts and champions at the highest level. Many of his students have also distinguished themselves as coaches, instructors, and referees.
Mr. Ohlenkamp was a coach and advisor to the Braille Institute of America Judo Team from 1976 to 2006. Due to the success of the local Judo program, he participated in the creation of a national Judo program for blind athletes, and served many years as head national coach and coordinator for the U.S. Association for Blind Athletes. He was the U.S. Team Coach at the 1988 Paralympics in Seoul, Korea, the 1989 World Championships for the Blind in Manchester, England, and the 1990 World Championships and Games for the Disabled in Assen, Netherlands. Coordinator of numerous elite athlete training camps, national and local tournaments, and other training opportunities for the visually impaired, he has trained many blind national and international champions, as well as other coaches and instructors. He served as the U.S. Representative to the International Blind Sports Association Judo Technical Committee from 1988 to 1993 and was instrumental in creating the international rules for visually impaired Judo competitors.
Mr. Ohlenkamp has been certified by the United States Judo Association as an instructor, referee, rank examiner, coach, and coach instructor. He was named United States Judo Coach of the Year for 1999. He has also been designated as a Master Coach by the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes. In 2009, Neil Ohlenkamp was elected and served on the Board of Directors of the United States Judo Association. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Child Development from California State University, Northridge.
As a pioneer in promoting martial arts around the world through the internet, Mr. Ohlenkamp created the first comprehensive web page devoted to Judo in 1995. The Judo Information Site at JudoInfo.com and the Judo Forum at JudoForum.com helped millions of visitors learn about Judo. The Judo Information Site established itself as the most popular, influential, and comprehensive source of information about Judo online for 20 years. He is a featured advisor and contributing writer on several web sites, and has had articles published in many Judo publications.
How Judo Unleashed! became a book.