72-year-old Scot receives top martial arts honour

SCOTLAND'S foremost judo expert has been elevated to the highest rank of the sport.

George Kerr has been named a "10th Dan", the Japanese martial arts highest honour. The 72-year-old said he is the world's youngest recipient and only the seventh person to receive the ranking.

He is one of very few non-Japanese to receive the honour, which was bestowed on him by the International Judo Federation in Paris and recognises his lifetime contribution to the sport as a competitor, coach, referee and administrator.

Speaking from the French capital, Mr Kerr said: "Quite frankly, I feel very honoured and slightly humbled. It's the biggest honour you can have in the sport."

Mr Kerr, from Edinburgh, began practising judo when he was eight and as a young man won a scholarship to study judo in Japan for four years. He won the gold medal in the 1957 European Championships in Rotterdam and a string of other awards.

Mr Kerr is the president of the British Judo Association and also runs a judo club for youngsters in Edinburgh.