Judo world champion and Olympic medallist Funa Tonaki visited Sydney from 17-22 May and held a three-day training workshop at Illawarra International Judo Club.
UTS Judo hosted the sold-out event. Coach and president of UTS Judo, Roman Garai says ever since Brisbane was successful in bidding for the Olympics in 2032, he has personally put together a slogan, "I want to be an Olympian", hoping to inspire and build a pathway for the future Olympians from Australia.
One of his many ideas was "Bring your hero, meet the hero."
Funa Tonaki was the silver medallist in the U48kg final of the Tokyo Olympics, and Mr Garai says Ms Tonaki is a "hero" for many children practising judo in Australia.
Not only is Ms Tonaki a popular figure in Australia, but Mr Grarai also says her execution of technique is "like a laser cut", a perfection which does not allow for even a millimetre of error.
Olympic judo medalist Funa Tonaki (left), Preseident of UTS Judo, Roman Garai (Right) Credit: Yumi Oba
The 27-year-old says the experience of teaching the sport to judoka of various ages, gender and level allowed her to realise the joy of teaching and hopes to do more in the future.
Ms Tonaki hopes to teach that judo is "not all about strength".
"It's about challenging yourself to matches while respecting your opponents."
"I want to teach not only techniques but etiquette as well. All the judo tricks have Japanese names. It's a window for people to learn about Japanese culture. That's what's important to me."
For the full interview of Funa Tonaki with Roman Garai, listen below.
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