Bernard Lepkofker (d. March 17, 2014) was a competitive

judoka is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

from Brooklyn, New York, in the United States. He was a two-time gold medalist at the

Maccabiah Games The Maccabiah Games (, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics") is an international multi-sport event with summer and winter sports competitions featuring Jews and Israelis regardless of religion ...

in Israel, won a New York Judo gold medal, and twice won silver medals in the US national championships.

Early life

Lepkofker was raised in a Jewish orphanage, the Pride of Judea Children's Home, and was Jewish. He attended Thomas Jefferson High School, with an initial goal to attend

Dayton University The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the US and the second-largest private university in Oh ...

. Lepkofker earned a basketball scholarship for college, attending the

University of Rio Grande The University of Rio Grande and Rio Grande Community College (originally Rio Grande College) is a private university and public community college merged into one institution in Rio Grande, Ohio. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commissi ...

in Ohio, but left after two years.

Judo career

Lepkofker joined the

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

, and did basic training at

F.E. Warren Air Force Base Francis E. Warren Air Force Base , shortened as F.E. Warren AFB is a United States Air Force base (AFB) located approximately west of Cheyenne, Wyoming. It is one of three strategic-missile bases in the U.S. It was named in honor of Medal of H ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

. While in the Air Force he learned

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

while stationed in Japan, training at the

Kodokan The , or ''Kōdōkan'' (講道館), is the headquarters of the worldwide judo community. The ''kōdōkan'' was founded in 1882 by Kanō Jigorō, the founder of judo, and is now an eight-story building in Tokyo. Etymology Literally, ''kō'' ...

school. Lepkofker won two silver medals and three bronze medals in the US National Championships during the years 1968, 1974, 1975, 1978, and 1979. In the 1968 National Championships, he lost to future

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

bronze medalist Allan Coage. Lepkofker was the 1965 New York Judo Gold Medalist. Lepkofker was the champion of the

1965 Maccabiah Games The 7th Maccabiah Games in 1965 saw 1,500 athletes from 29 different countries compete in 21 sports. It was the first Maccabiah Games for Iran, Jamaica, Peru, and Venezuela. The United States delegation won the most gold medals, followed by Israel ...

in Israel, and a competitor in the

1969 Maccabiah Games At the 8th Maccabiah Games from July 29 to August 7, 1969, 1,450 athletes from 27 countries competed in 22 sports in Israel. The final gold medal count was the United States in first place (64), Israel second (48; though it won the greatest numb ...

. At the

1973 Maccabiah Games The 9th Maccabiah Games, which were held from July 9 to 19, 1973, were opened in Ramat Gan Stadium, Israel. Spain and Costa Rica made their debuts in the Games. A total of 1,800 athletes competed on behalf of 27 countries in 20 branches of sport, i ...

, he won a gold medal in the heavyweight competition. He also unsuccessfully attempted to make the US Olympic Team. Lepkofker stood 6'4 and weighed 240 lbs in his prime. He was also one half of the Judo Twins with his brother, Robert Lepkofker. He was a member of the

New York Athletic Club The New York Athletic Club is a Gentlemen's club, private social club and athletic club in New York (state), New York state. Founded in 1868, the club has approximately 8,600 members and two facilities: the City House, located at 180 Central Pa ...

Personal life

Lepkofker was a

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

veteran. He and his brother opened up a judo school in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, the American Kodokan Judo School, and upon gaining popularity they appeared on ''

The Johnny Carson Show ''The Johnny Carson Show'' is a 1955–56 half-hour primetime television variety show starring Johnny Carson. While working as a staff writer on ''The Red Skelton Show'', local Los Angeles television comedian Carson filled in as host when Ske ...

''. Lepkofker died on March 17, 2014.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lepkofker, Bernard American male judoka 2014 deaths Competitors at the 1965 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1969 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1973 Maccabiah Games Jewish American sportspeople Maccabiah Games medalists in judo Maccabiah Games gold medalists for the United States Martial artists from Brooklyn University of Rio Grande alumni