His father Toshizo san was born in 1867 and his wife Koto san was born in 1877. She was the second daughter of Toshizo's neighbour, Katayama Genzo san.
Their eldest son went to a dental college in Osaka. The second son became a secretary to the Mayor of Osaka, whilst a third son married into the Koto family and was employed as a farm hand. The whole family was honest and very strong willed, especially his father.

On the 4th of September 1918 his father passed away at the age of just 51; tragically drowned in floodwater during a Kendo weekend course in the mountains, and as a result his bereaved family became stronger in family ties.

For instance, when his two year older sister Toyoko saw Kenshiro grappling and holding down an opponent, she came over and said, "Ken, come on! Beat him out! I will hold your shoes for you!"

Kenshiro was not a kind of child that would bully or fight on purpose, but his sharp temper had already been recognized in his early childhood.
In early summer 1919, when Kenshiro was just four years old, the year after Toshizo's death, relatives and friends came to Abbe household to help with the wheat threshing. Kenshiro, as always up to much mischief, would run back and forth, much to the annoyance of all the others. One of them asked Kenshiro to stay away from them, and pushed his buttocks away with a farm implement. "You hit me with a tool" exclaimed Kenshiro, blaming a 30 year old fellow who just happened to be nearby and holding a tool. After chasing him around the house three times, the fellow gave up the chase to invited Kenshiro to hit him back! Following that incident, the character of the youngest son of the family became well know throughout the village!

A figure who had a crucial influence on Kenshiro's childhood and up-bringing was a family friend named Manpei Hino san. When his father tragically died he, at just 20 years of age, became a father figure to Kenshiro, and it was he who took charge in the special education for Kenshiro who had already proven to be naturally gifted in martial art and Judo techniques.

As an infant Kenshiro first took to the traditional Japanese art of Sumo and Manpei san encouraged this by spending many hours wrestling with him. This interest was also encouraged by his primary school teacher Sensei Fujiwara san, who administered Kenshiro's special education in parallel with Manpei san's fatherly guidance.

Sensei Fujiwara san very much loved to let his students play Sumo and on rainy days he would organise tournaments for them as physical education classes. Although Kenshiro's physique was normal, he was the strongest in the class and was soon winning prizes in tournaments here and elsewhere throughout the province. The earliest record of a Kenshiro victory is of that at a children's tournament celebrating harvest festival which was held at the site of a shrine near his home. Abbe won stationary and cash.

Lower School
At the age of 13, in April 1928 he attended a lower secondary school which had recently been built in the nearby town of Kawashima. In the beginning there was no Judo-Bu (club or circle), so for recreation he took part in basketball.

Whilst in his second year (1929) a former police officer, Nakamoto Kazohira san founded a Judo-Bu and Kenshiro joined without delay, and his enthusiasm exceeded his teacher's expectations. His mother Koto was essentially a very hard worker, and very good at cooking. She looked after the needs of her Kenshiro as well as the lodgers in the house; cooking carefully for them, with a keen eye for nutrition.

"Taisho": A Manly Man in the Making
Kenshiro was indeed a good all round athlete and he was particularly interested in pole vaulting. He was a very serious person who was obviously able to accept responsibility and display maturity beyond his age. The following true story illustrates his maturity.

Once, one of the schools Judo club children ran off home crying after being insulted by another member. This kind of discrimination was unfortunately not uncommon at this time in certain parts of the country. The insulted student on arriving home told people in the village. They became very angry and came to the school en masse to complain.

When the arrived they found that for whatever private or personal reason, the teacher has left the school and gone home! The villagers demanded to see someone in authority and have the student who was responsible for the insult punished.

Kenshiro, who had remained at the school with some other Judo students stopped the training, came forward and said," I am the captain of this club and therefore a members fault is my fault, so I will listen to you; but right now we are all training, so would you please wait until we have finished".

Kenshiro allowed the students to complete their training and leave for home and then accompanied the villagers back to the house of the teacher and insisted that he recount the details of the insult.
Before his departure he remarked that he had not personally heard any offending remark as he had been engrossed in training at the time yet he concluded that he would himself apologize and punish the offending student severely for the insult. The villagers admired his respectable behaviour and set about preparing him a dinner. Far from hesitating or continuing in his earlier humble manner, when served Kenshiro actually asked for further helpings several times and ate all that was placed before him.
Everyone was delighted with his manliness and henceforth called him "Taisho" (A great manly/man) and he was respected and treated him like an adult from then onward.

Kenshiro was awarded his Shodan (1st Dan) in 1990 during his 3rd year at lower school and Nidan (2nd Dan) the following year. By the age of 16 he was the champion of the High School Judo League at Tokushima and under the auspices of the Butokukwai, the then controlling National Body of Martial Arts and was awarded his 3rd Dan by Hamano Shohei san - defeating ten opponents. He the youngest person ever to gain this award and there was not a single person in Tokushima Province capable of defeating him.

During his 5th year at school (1933) Kenshiro captained Kawashima Town in an inter-city tournament in a competition against twenty nine other towns. Being very fast and light in foot and body he dispatched every opponent in double quick time. He was so fast that it was said that he had wings - and this earn him another nickname - "Pegasus".