Keiko Wakabayshi Will Kick Train Your Ass

I totally love this story: Martial arts expert Keiko Wakabayshi has been hired by the Italian military to train their recruits in hand-to-hand combat. Known as the "Samurai Granny," Wakabayshi is "a trained master in an array of martial arts disciplines including jujitsu, jojitso, kenjitso, judo, kendo and karate."

She also stands exactly five feet tall and is 77 years old.

She wipes the floor with soldiers of the Folgore brigade at their barracks in Livorno on a daily basis.

…She tells her students to look at her and believe that nothing is impossible. After flooring an opponent she tells them: "Don't think it's unbelievable. The physique doesn't matter."

Sparring is regarded as the most effective method of teaching martial arts and senior Italian military officers hope the experience of being humiliated by Miss Wakabayshi will toughen up their soldiers.

Miss Wakabayshi trained for many years to achieve her level of expertise and believes she can carry on defeating brawny soldiers for years to come.

Naturally, I'm annoyed that this story can't be told without the framing that the men are being toughened-up by the "humiliation" of being bested by woman, as opposed to just straightforwardly giving her credit for training them, but wev. This post isn't about that.

This post is about celebrating Keiko Wakabayshi for being not only hugely inspirational but also just totally fookin' cool.



I mean, come on. How cool is she?!