Edward N. Szrejter, a USMC veteran of W.W.II, Korea, Lebanon, Cuba and Vietnam, born 12/16/27, began his study of Judo in January 1950 at the Naval Air Station, Miami, Florida. He studied in Po Hang, Korea from 1953 to 1954, and studied in Japan under Minehko Nakano Sensei, Hamada and Kotani Senseis in 1951, 1954-55, and 1958-59. Ed Szrejter trained under Ishikawa Sensei at the Ishikawa Judo School in Virginia. In Luxembourg, he trained under Ackermann Sensei, and, traveling to Brussels, Belgium, he trained under Abe Sensei, current head of the Foreign Division of the Kodokan.
Wherever he has traveled, if there was no Judo, he started it. If there was Judo, he joined in, and helped and learned. In the last 53 years when many have retired from Judo, or quit and come back, Ed Szrejter has been there every day, in the trenches, practicing, helping and living Judo. From little local dojos to national organizations around the world, with Ed, it’s not just name recognition; he is personally known and respected.
Mr. Szrejter was Head Sensei, Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina Judo Club, 1959-1962 and 1967-1969, Head Sensei and Club Founder, American Embassy Marine Security Guard Judo Club, Luxembourg, 1962-65, Head Sensei, Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro, California, 1965-66, Head Sensei, Danang Judo Club, Vietnam, 1966-67; Head Sensei, Tarheel Judo Schools, Jacksonville, North Carolina (over 235 members), 1969-93; Head Sensei, National Judo Institute, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1993 to present; Head Sensei, US Air Force Academy Judo Club, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 2002 to present. He was also Executive Director of the USJA from 1993-2002. As a known clinician, he is continually conducting clinics throughout the U.S.
Ed Szrejter was certified as a National Referee in 1981, is a Certified Master Coach and Examiner, Certified “A” in Nage-no-kata, Certified “A” in Katame-no-kata, Certified “B” in Goshin-jitsu, and is creator of the new USJA Renraku-no-kata. He was Head Referee for the State of North Carolina for over ten years; Judo manager for teams to the Olympic Festivals in 1985, 1986, and 1987; Judo manager in 1995 for the U.S. teams to Austria, Germany and Hungary; served as a Judo official at the 1996 Olympic games in Atlanta. He also holds the rank of Hachidan in Jujitsu, and has studied Isshinryu Karate and Aikido.
In 1959, Mr. Szrejter won the South-East Japan Judo Team Championship in Iwakuni, Japan; the North Carolina State Championship, 1960 and 1961; All-Marine Championships, 3rd Place, 1961; competed in Luxembourg, Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands from 1962-1964, gaining 1st, 2nd and 3rd places on several occasions.
He taught military and police forces in the Republic of South Africa 1991, 1992 and again in 1994; while in South Africa, he acted as Head Referee at many tournaments, also refereeing at their Junior, Senior and Team Championships.
At the 2002 Junior Nationals in Boca Raton, Florida, Edward N. Szrejter, was promoted to Kudan, 9th Degree Black Belt in Judo, by the United States Judo Association. On behalf of the many thousands of judokas that Ed Szrejter has touched over the years, congratulations and thank you, you have our undying gratitude.
