Julie Koyama
Julie (Bellows) Koyama was born in 1952 in Baker, Oregon. Her father was an intelligence officer in the United States Marine Corp, and her mother first worked in an attorney’s office in eastern Oregon and then later as an elected judge. Julie was exposed to the martial art of judo starting at the age of 7 after her father enrolled her and her younger sister in a class at a local dojo. (Her father had begun practicing judo while stationed in Japan.) Koyama continued to practice and compete as a judoka until she was 14, at which point she was forced to quit since there was no women’s competition division at the time.
After high school, Koyama began her studies at the University of Oregon, graduating with a biochemistry degree in 1973. She then applied for medical school but suffered a broken leg that prevented her from attending. Koyama ultimately chose not to go through the application process again and worked instead as a teacher. She later returned to school and eventually pursued a career as a nurse in emergency medicine.
In 2015, after retiring in Newport, Oregon, Koyama began volunteering with the Oregon State University Judo Club. The following year, she accepted an offer to coach the team. In 2021, Koyama also began teaching judo and self-defense PAC classes at OSU as an instructor.