George Harris (judoka)

Finished Fourth

George Lee Harris (January 15, 1933 – January 7, 2011) was a member of the first United States Olympic judo team. He was born in Kittrell, North Carolina. He was a 10th dan in Judo. Harris began his judo career after 1952. Harris while speaking at Jack Krystek's School of Judo stated he was initially a boxer before becoming a Judoka.

He was a two-time gold medalist in the Pan American Games (1960 and 1963), four-time United States National Champion (1957, 1958, ...), and six time Air Force Champion. He also trained at the Kodokan where he earned his blackbelt.

Harris had a long involvement with military judo in the United States Air Force, and later served as president of the United States Judo Association.

Mr. Harris starred in the late-1970s martial-arts film, "The Year of the Gentle Tiger", a forerunner to "The Karate Kid". He also appeared on talk shows and was twice a guest on "To Tell the Truth".