Harold Sharp

Sharp was born in 1927.^[1] Sharp was deployed with the army in 1945 to Japan and learned about martial arts.^[2] He attended Los Angeles State College.^[3]

He earned his first black belt from the Kodokan.^[3] In Japan, he was assigned as being a body guard of Emperor Hirohito.^[4] He was a student of Takahiko Ishikawa. He was the winner of the first Foreign Judo Championships in 1954.^[2] He became captain of the 1955 US Goodwill Team.^[5] Sharp though stated that the Captain was John Osaka and he was a member of the team.^[6]

He co-authored The Sport of Judo,^[7] Boys' Judo: Sport, Defense,^[8] and The Techniques of Judo (Tuttle Martial Arts). The Techniques of Judo, originally published by Tuttle in 1960, has been cited as one of the foundational English-language manuals on the art. It blends traditional Japanese instruction with modern explanations suitable for Western students.^[9][10] These books sold over 250,000 copies.^[1] He served as a technical advisor for "Mrs Judo", a movie about Keiko Fukuda.^[11] He is a 10th dan in Judo, promoted by the Nanka Judo Yudanshakai on October 31, 2020. His final book was "The Road To Black Belt".

Sharp had a number of Judo friends including that of Charles Palmer (judoka)^[12] He also served as instructor for Star Trek's William Shatner.^[12] In 1968, Sharp attended a martial arts forum at Black Belt Magazine representing Judo.^[13]

Sharp was inducted into the USA Judo Hall of Fame in 2019.^[14] Sharp died on March 21, 2021.^[1][15]

Hal Sharp: My Life and Judo, Black Belt, November 1964