is a retired judo

Judo

is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...

ka.

Yamaguchi won the All-Japan Judo Championships

All-Japan Judo Championships

is a judo tournament held every year in Japan. The men's tournament is held in Nippon Budokan on April 29 and the women's tournament is held in Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium in April. The Kodokan and All-Japan Judo Federation sponsor the championship....

 10 consecutive times from 1978-1987 (twice in the -50 kg division, seven times in the -52 kg division) and won her first medal at the 1980 World Judo Championships

1980 World Judo Championships

The 1980 World Judo Championships were the 1st edition of the women's World Judo Championships, and were held in New York, United States from November 29–30 1980.-Women:- Medals table :...

. She went on to win 4 silver medals and one gold medal at the World Judo Championships

World Judo Championships

The World Judo Championships are the highest level of international judo competition, along with the Olympic judo competition. The championships are held once every year by the International Judo Federation, and qualified judoka compete in their respective categories as representatives of their...

. She also made an appearance at the 1988 Summer Olympics

1988 Summer Olympics

The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...

, and finished with a bronze medal, though women's judo was a demonstration sport at the time. She retired from competitive judo in 1989 when she graduated from the University of Tsukuba

University of Tsukuba

is located in the city of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture in the Kantō region of Japan. The University has 28 college clusters and schools with a total of around 15,000 students...

. She worked as an instructor for the University of Tsukuba and Musashi University

Musashi University

is a university in Tokyo, Japan. It was founded by leading businessman Kaichiro Nezu in 1922 as Musashi High School.It has faculties of economics, humanities, and sociology, as well as three graduate schools....

 since retiring.　Yamaguchi is currently Associate professor of Tsukuba.

She is the model for the protagonist in Naoki Urasawa

Naoki Urasawa

is a Japanese manga artist.-Early life:He graduated from Meisei University with a degree in economics. In 2008, Urasawa had a guest teaching post at Nagoya Zokei University, where he taught classes on manga.-Manga career:...

's judo manga, Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl

Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl

YAWARA!, also known as Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl, is a Japanese manga series by Naoki Urasawa which ran in Big Comic Spirits from 1986 to 1993...

, and makes a cameo appearance in the film version of the manga as well.