Jane Ozeki
7th Dan, Shidoin
Aikido Practitioner since 1971
Jane was born in mainland China. She emigrated to the USA when she was 12 years old; and, has lived in New York City since then. She began her practice of Aikido, under Yoshimitsu Yamada Sensei at the New York Aikikai, in 1971.
Jane and her late husband, Phillip Ozeki, began their study of Aikido together. Shortly after their marriage, the early morning Aikido class became an essential part of their lives. Phillip died in March of 1996.
She became a morning class instructor in 1974. Aikido was such an integral part of her life that she practiced throughout her pregnancy in 1979, right up to her day of delivery; which was natural and uneventful. Her daughter, Mieko A. Ozeki, practiced Aikido for several years in NY Aikikai alongside herself and her husband
From 1990 to present, she has been a public school teacher, in Lower Manhattan.
In recent years Jane has traveled extensively, conducting weekend Aikido seminars, at dojos and colleges in many States of the US, and also in France, Brazil, Peru and Venezuela. She is a Shidoin and holds the rank of 7th dan.
New York Aikikai "Morning Class" instructor, Luqman Abdul Hakeem, with Phillip and Jane Ozeki, in 1979.
Interview
Longtime Aikidoka Jane Ozeki: New York Aikikai and Family (2021)