Meet the 77-year-old who founded a Glasgow judo club 50 years ago

Following a career spanning almost six decades, including spells as Scottish champion and coach of Scotland’s national team, you could say that Eric Kane has a strong association with judo. And yet it was only because of a football injury that he first gave the sport a go.

“I was a semi-professional football player,” Eric said. “I had a cartilage operation when I was 19, after which a doctor advised me that I should try judo to help rebuild the muscle - which is contrary to what you would be told these days.

“I went along to the judo and I seemed to take to it very well. I was accused by my coach of having done judo before - which I hadn’t. But it felt very familiar to me. There was a great enjoyment in the body movement, and working with the body.

“And that was me - I never went back to football again.”

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After gaining his coaching badges in 1974, Eric immediately set about establishing Bellahouston Judo Club. Though the club has moved several times from its original home in Bellahouston Sports Centre - and is now based in the Arc Sports Centre at Caledonian University - Eric has remained a constant presence throughout.

Perhaps surprisingly, he credits judo with teaching him not how to fight, but how to unwind.

“I was always a person with lots of energy,” he said. “I would run from South Queensferry into Edinburgh to work, then run back afterwards, then go to Hamilton for a judo practice! I had that type of energy.

“It was a question of how to hone that energy, how to control it. And that is where the judo has changed my life in many aspects.

“It taught me how to relax. Relaxation is a very big part of movement, because without a relaxed body, the body is stiff, and therefore the movement is sluggish. So judo has relaxed my life completely.”

Despite his advancing years, Eric still leads a class every Saturday morning - even if he’s not quite as agile as he once was.

“My practice has changed over the years. I’ve had seven knee and hip operations! I’m 77 now, and you can’t go on forever.

“But I still get great enjoyment out of the practice, because I’m still learning - studying the way people move, what limits them in their movement, and how to teach them. There’s still a lot of learning going on.”

During Covid, Eric decided to hand the club's reins over to Derek McCutcheon, a long-time member and former champion himself.

Speaking to Derek, he has no doubts about what has kept the club in existence for so long.

“The anniversary is a celebration of the club,” he said, “but it’s also a celebration of Eric.”

“We’ve had to move a few times, and it’s always difficult trying to retain members when you’re moving around. But people have followed Eric. The way he teaches and coaches is what attracts people, and what’s kept the club going.”

Both Derek and Eric emphasise the point that judo is about training the mind as much as the body. Derek recalls a quote from the sport’s founder Jigorō Kanō: ‘The purpose of judo is to perfect yourself and to contribute to society.’ “It makes for a healthy mind as well as a healthy body,” he adds. Eric echoes the sentiment, noting that the practice has taught him “acceptance - to accept what happens, without getting upset about things.”

The old master parts with a lesson he first heard long before he understood it.

“When I started judo, I was told that “judo is for life.” At the time I took that to mean that it’s something that you’ll do for life.

“But I didn’t appreciate the real meaning, which is that the lessons that you learn about yourself in judo, you take into life with you. It becomes part of you.”

50th birthday celebrations concluded, the club is now looking to the future. New members of all abilities are always welcome, and anyone interested is warmly encouraged to get in touch or come along to a session.

More information can be found at: www.bellajudo.co.uk