Rising son of Scotland

One of the country's foremost judo experts has been honoured by Emperor Akihito of Japan.

British Judo Association president George Kerr, 73, from Edinburgh, said he was "thrilled to bits" after learning he is to receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Japan's equivalent of a CBE.

The honour is in recognition of Mr Kerr's contribution to the sport and UK-Japanese relations.

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Mr Kerr said: "It's quite an honour. I think I'm the first judo player in Great Britain to receive this sort of thing, so it's really nice.

"It's been a brilliant year. It's blown me away. The whole thing's been like a fairytale."