Judo in Canada Sasaki's students went on to establish their own dojos across Canada. The Canadian Kodokan Black Belt Association was incorporated in 1956 and recognized by the International Judo Federation in 1958. Now known as Judo Canada, it is the national governing body and a federation of associations in each of the ten provinces and three territories. Today, an estimated 30,000 Canadians participate in Judo programs in approximately 400 clubs across Canada. Judo uses a hierarchical ranking system divided into "kyū" and "dan" grades that its founder, Jigoro Kano, adapted from the ranking system for the traditional board game Go. "Kyū" grades
Dan (rank) the highest attainable rank. Unlike Judo, all "dan" promotion within the All Japan Kendo Federation, International Kendo Federation and its member countries is by examination. Whereas "dan" grades are awarded for technical ability, there is a parallel "shogo" system awarding the higher teaching grades of "renshi", "kyoshi", and "hanshi". "Renshi" and "kyoshi" are awarded by written examination while "hanshi" by election. Although the "dan" system is distinctly Japanese, it has been adopted by many other martial arts styles. The "dan" system and the well-known symbol of a black belt have been absorbed into common usage to represent a person with