Hank Kraft

Who is Hank Kraft?

Henry Hank Kraft, born in Queens, NY attended Grover Cleveland High School and Pace College. In 1963 he received his 3rd Dan in Judo. At latest check he is a 7th Dan in Judo.

A New York City based Judo Instructor for almost 4 decades, Kraft picked up Judo after enrolling in a month long course at CUNY Queens College. He was drafted into the Army for the Korean War, and later studied Judo at the Kodokan. Kraft has trained over 55 national and international competitors who have ranked 1, 2, or 3 in their division. He would serve as a rank chairman for the NY Judo Yudankashi He served as the alternate manager for the U.S. judo team at the 1974 Pan American games. He worked with a Judo committee to get US Grand Champion and future Olympic Bronze Medalists Allen Coage a full scholarship to the Kodokan. He also trained American teams against a German Team for Judo. Kraft recently trained 2000 Olympic hopeful Alain Andrianov. Kraft as reported by the daily news said that Andrianov was a strong contender for a medal if not for citizenship issues.