Judo family matriarch shares her passion with the next generation

Wakako (R) and Tomoe at the Toma Sports Centre in Toma, Hokkaido prefecture. Photos: Yasuyoshi Chiba/ AFP

Wakako Ueno raised three daughters to Olympic or World Championship glory and now the matriarch of Japan's most-decorated judo dynasty is passing on her passion to the next generation.

The 64-year-old puts around 10 children as young as seven through their paces in her tatami-mat dojo in the small town of Toma, more than 900 km north of Tokyo on the island of Hokkaido.