JFA Hall of Fame Inductee

TSUBOI Gendo

Inductees Recommended by the Committee (Special Selection)

Born in Chiba on 9 January 1852

Childhood Name: Nisuke
Head teacher at Physical Education Teaching Centre, professor at Tokyo Normal Higher School, professor at Tokyo Women's Higher Normal School, honorary headmaster at Tokyo Women's School of Physical Education and Music. Father of physical education in schools, credited with major role in promotion of physical education for women. Initiator of spread of football in Japan. Begins development of football in school physical education and club activities.

During teacher training at Physical Education Teaching Centre (founded in 1878, later merged into Tokyo Normal Higher School), preaches importance of outdoor sports in addition to teaching light exercise. In "Playing Outdoors - Outdoor Exercise" (written jointly with Morinari Tanaka), published in 1885, introduces football as example of outdoor exercise. Item 17 in this book, "Football", is the first ever description of football to be written in Japanese, and with the original and revised versions going on to influence later physical education books, this leads to football gaining a place among physical education in schools.

Reaffirms both physical and mental value of football in physical education during observations in Europe in 1901-2, and works to spread the sport upon his return to Japan. Having been leader at the club, Tokyo Normal Higher School Association Football Club uses books Tsuboi brought back from Europe as reference and receives his opinions and proofreading in publishing "Association Football" (1903), and "Football" (1908). These books were the first specialist football books in Japan to explain football mechanisms in detail, and contributed to the spread of football in the country. Tsuboi himself is active in coaching football at the Tokyo Normal Higher School-Affiliated Elementary School, and teachers and football club members receiving his tutelage go on to spread football into more schools across the country. Tsuboi also succeeds in developing football into sports clubs in universities and specialist high schools through this football club.

• TAKAHASHI Ryutaro