Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson

Judo Beginnings

Janet began her Judo training at the Ann Arbor Judo Club in 1968 at the age of 10 under the instruction of her father, Dr. Sachio Ashida. When Miss Keiko Fukuda visited the Ashida family that year, she taught Janet the first set of Kime Shiki with neither speaking the other’s native language. Her family moved to Brockport, NY in the summer of 1970, putting a brief hold on Janet’s training until a facility and community program could be established. She was back on the mat in the Spring of 1971. She earned her shodan in 1975, became a USJF Life Member, and was assigned to teach a Judo for Children program through the continuing education department at the College, a job she continues to do for Recreation Services.

Janet taught for 33 years in kindergarten, first grade, looping K to first, and ending in universal pre-kindergarten, with the vast majority of the time teaching in an inclusive classroom. She has a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Physical Education K-12, Elementary Education N-6 and a minor in foreign languages. Her Master’s Degree is in Early Childhood Education Birth-5. Teaching provided her with a large and continually expanding tool bag for delivering new information, motivating children, developing their self-awareness and self-discipline skills, individualizing instruction as needed, and accommodating kids with challenges. Most importantly, Janet has developed a deep and driving awareness that learning, improving, and honing one’s own skills and personal development is just as important as sharing what you know with others. She holds a firm belief that you are never too old or know too much to stop learning.

Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson and student

Her attitude toward Judo

Not only does Janet highly value all the things that make judo unique, She has met some amazing people and made some incredible friendships and connections all over the world. She was fortunate to grow up with her father as her sensei. He was the U.S. Olympic judo coach in 1976 and was an Olympic referee in 1984. Janet believes he is the only American to have been both Olympic coach and Olympic referee in judo. She has been blessed to meet and get to know many Olympians and world champions, international coaches and referees whom she considers incredible people in their own right, as well as notably talented in the sport.

Judo brought Janet and her husband together, as well as helped with the adoption of her son from Japan.

Dr. Sachio Ashida

Recipient of the Jeremy Glick Award – 2019

At the United States Judo Federation 2019 Jeremy Glick Award, Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson with Bill Gugino and Barbara Shimizu. Posted on July 22, 2019 by Billy Gugino and Vaughn Imada.

At the 2019 Jeremy Glick Award – United States Judo Federation Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson with Bill Gugino and Barbara Shimizu Posted on July 22, 2019, by Bill Gugino and Vaughn Imada.

Local and Regional Contributions

June 2012 – Present

Head Instructor of Renshinkan Judo Dojo/Brockport Judo Club

June 2014 – Present

President of the Niagara Yudanshakai.
Responsibilities include representing Niagara at semi-annual LIVE National meetings, and at all other meetings throughout the year, disseminating information to member clubs, organizing Yudanshakai events and meetings as well as serving as chief clinician for the kata portions of our semiannual promotion examination.

Yudanshakai Promotion Committee Contributions

April 1984 – June 2014: Janet served as the Chair of the Promotion Evaluation committee for Niagara Judo Yudanshakai. When the President passed away suddenly, she was promoted to that position.

Referee Contributions

April 2011 – September 2020: Every year Janet served as either Chief Referee, Referee Evaluator or Referee at the following events: Senior National Championships, National Junior Olympics, International Junior Olympics, US Open Judo Championships, National Scholastic Championships Pedro Challenge, Liberty Bell Classic, Am Can Challenge, frequently the Morris Cup, and Ocean State, in addition to multiple local events.

Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson, referee

January 2016 – September 2020 Janet was the only female member of USA Judo’s Referee Commission. The Commission is responsible for referee development, education, training and evaluation, protocol and procedure development and annual International Judo Federation rule adaptations. This was an appointed/voted on position. In 2019–20 she served as a co-chair of the Commission. During her time on the Commission, Janet drafted the majority of the policy and procedure documents that were then finalized and voted into action for the Commission. Accepting this position required her to abide by the Pan American Judo Union’s new policy stating that members of National Governing Bodies which appointed, assigned or voted on referees from their country to international events were ineligible to referee at those events except when there was a personal letter of invitation from the event’s Referee Director. In short, Janet gave up pursuing a higher refereeing career to serve on the Commission.

In 2014 Janet earned the International Blind Sports Association certification as International Level IBSA Referee, which includes blind, hearing impaired and blind/deaf competitors. She has since IBSA Refereed at the Pan American IBSA Games, The Para-Pan American Games and the North American Para Championships. Janet has also refereed multiple IBSA Matches in domestic national competitions, as well as serving as a clinician for referees and coaches desiring experience with IBSA Judo regulations and IBSA referee training strategies.

In 2017, Janet traveled to Baku, Azerbaijan, to attend an international Judo Federation referee and coach seminar. In Fort Lauderdale, Janet was able to attend a fabulous clinic by the Pan American refereeing director and serve as a referee evaluator for the US Junior and Senior Open Championships. She also attended the Quebec Open, not only to referee, but to support some of the referee examination candidates for international and continental level certification while serving on the USA Judo Referee Commission. Every candidate the USA Judo Commission put forward to take an examination in 2017, for international, continental, and Pan American certification passed.

Most of Janet’s judo travel is domestic.

International Events

Throughout Janet’s active refereeing career, she also refereed at the Fukuoka Cup in Japan, in Shanghai, China, the World Cup in Belo Horizante followed by the USA vs Brazil Team competition in Porto Alegre, Brazil, the first Cadet World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, in Puerto Vallarta and several times in Mexico City, Mexico, in Puerto Rico, a few times, several times in Calgary, Montreal and Toronto, Canada just to name a few of the international trips to referee she was honored to make. With two exceptions, these trips were all self-funded.

In 2017 (BAKU), 2019 (Mittersill) and 2020 (Roatan), she was assigned by USA Judo Referee Commission to attend the International Judo Federation Referee/Coach Seminar to gather the new information about updated rules, their interpretation and application and then work with the group to develop the educational materials to bring back to the USA for referee development.

In 2019 Janet was the recipient of the USA Judo Referee Commission John Osako Referee Award for service to the development of referees and refereeing in the US.

Janet was the recipient of the 2019 USJF Jeremy Glick Award for selfless service to Judo and the greater Community.

When Robert Fukuda’s health started to impact his PJC workload, he requested some help from the USA Judo Referee Commission. Janet was the only one who volunteered her services. At that time, self-selected international travel was almost unheard of … if one did not have a powerful advocate on the commission no opportunities were offered. Janet’s responsibilities included interfacing with the travel people at USA Judo, sending out information tracking on a first-come, first-served basis until a quota was reached for a given event, putting candidates forward for a vote by the Commission for approval, letting all requesters know the status resulting from the votes and letting them know what the procedures were to go forward, then informing the PJC of the actions. As word got out the self-selected program exploded and in the first three months Janet received over 30 requests. Then there started to be more applicants than slots available. As requests for self-selected travel started to flow in, policies and procedures needed to be put in place to manage the sudden escalation of requests. Janet has always felt that everyone should have an equal opportunity for growth and advancement. She wrote several in-depth policies and procedures that the Commission adopted. It no longer became a matter of who you knew, but how effective you were in searching out appropriate and available opportunities to travel abroad. Some Commissioners were quite upset they no longer had sole power to send very select people where they wanted. Janet’s philosophy that everyone deserved an equitable opportunity to learn and grow has been deeply embedded in her heart and soul. This is also one reason why Janet’s original selection for the USJF Promotion Committee as a representative for small Yudanshakai was personally meaningful to her.

Kata Contributions

Eric Joseph and Janet Johnson reviewing candidates at a Niagara Judo Yudanshakai Promotion clinic.

January 2011 – present

Janet served for several years as a National Kata Judge in Ju No Kata, Katame No Kata and Nage No Kata, and was requested twice for Kodokan Goshin Jutsu for USJI/USA Judo. Janet is passionate about the study of Kata and has taught a minimum of two annual kata clinics each year in the Niagara Yudanshakai. She has also conducted private tutorial sessions for some national and international kata competitors.

USJF Committee Contributions

2021 – Present

Janet is a member of the Junior and Youth Development Subcommittee, and chaired four Presidential Ad Hoc committees for the USJF. Janet has been asked to Chair the Junior and Youth Subcommittee for USJF, effective April 2025. Janet also works with the Koka Kids Subcommittee. In 2024 Janet began working with the Referee Development Committee.

2017 – Present

Athlete/Scholar of the Year Committee member, Elizabeth Lee Committee, Women’s Committee

2016 – Present

Janet is a member of the USJF National Promotion Committee responsible for reviewing, evaluating and approving or rejecting black belt level (1st degree through 10th degree) promotion applications as well as serving on ad hoc committees at the Chair’s request.

Personal Life

Don first saw Janet and Dr. Ashida at a judo demonstration at Brockport High School and instantly fell in love (with Judo, that is)! They started dating years later after settling in on their professional careers, Don for 30 years as a Tool and Die/Machine Builder with General Motors. Each carved out time for training, teaching, traveling, and study, eventually focussing on Janet’s refereeing with Don picking up the slack at home and stepping up at the dojo as necessary.

Dr. Ashida watching 4 year old grandson Alan throwing his mom

Their son Alan has always been considered an asset rather than a complication. His first TV show was the All Japan Championship. Alan was the Honored guest at a tournament at the dojo a few hours into his first day at Don and Janet’s home!

The family: Don, Alan, Yushan Cai, and Janet

Don and Alan have supported Janet’s judo journey at each step in spite of the toll it took on them. As a family, the Johnsons practiced judo on the mat and off, as a sport and as an overall philosophy, supporting each other’s individual goals and together as an extended group. There has never been any distinction between family, friends, those recently met, and those yet to be met. Even people with little in common find an open door, a warm greeting, a seat at the table, a welcoming dojo with willing partners, and a deep bow when it was time to part. Raising Alan without a “we are not them” or a “they shouldn’t do that” perspective but rather a “this is who we are and what we do” perspective has served him well.

$Cutting from newspaper with caption “Sachio Ashida, right, helps his daughter, Janet Ashida Johnson, and her husband, Don, with a Seoi-Nage technique. The 82-year-old, who has just been awarded a ninth-degree black belt by the United States Judo Federation, guided his daughter and son-in-law through the technique recently in the Judo room at SUNY Brockport\'s Cooper Hall. (Photo by Carrie Ann Grippo)”$

Cutting from newspaper with caption “Sachio Ashida, right, helps his daughter, Janet Ashida Johnson, and her husband, Don, with a Seoi-Nage technique. The 82-year-old, who has just been awarded a ninth-degree black belt by the United States Judo Federation, guided his daughter and son-in-law through the technique recently in the Judo room at SUNY Brockport’s Cooper Hall. (Photo by Carrie Ann Grippo)”

Janet Yoshie Ashida Johnson