The amazing sportsman Shohei Ono is a judo coach and a former judoka, who competed in the -73kg weight class. He is a 2x Olympic Champion, a 6x World Champion, an Asian Games Champion, a 5x IJF Grand Slam Champion, and a 2x IJF Grand Prix Champion. As a 5th dan black belt, he was one of the lightweight division’s most dominant fighters, having won in every major championship he competed since 2015.

Born and raised in Yamaguchi, Japan, Ono started judo at a young age, and by the time he was 19-years-old he was the World Juniors Championships Champion, having taken Gold in the -73kg weight class. In 2012 he took Gold at his first IJF Grand Slam, as well as Silver at the Asian Championships, and then in 2013 he rose to prominence in the sport, becoming Japan’s third lightweight champion in four years after winning Gold at the World Championships, as well as a Men’s team Bronze . He went on to take four more Golds, a Silver and a Bronze at the IJF Grand Slam, as well as two Golds at the IJF Grand Prix, and Gold at the 2018 Asian Games. Between 2014 and 2019 he won four more individual Golds and a Mixed team Gold at the World Championships, while at the Olympics he became Champion after winning Gold in Rio 2016. He defended his title at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics, as well as adding a Mixed team Silver to his tally. He finally retired from the sport in December 2022 and switched to coaching.

Ono regularly connects with his hundreds of thousands of followers and fans through Instagram, and Twitter, posting pictures and comments about his life both on and off the mat.