University Taikai 2010

Min-Ho, Mark and Michael participated in the University Taikai 2010 which was held in Edinburgh. On the first day, both Min-Ho and Mark found teams that were a fighter short. They also competed on the Sunday in the men’s individuals. Michael - as third dan and way past being a student - had his first outing as a referee on a national level.

Overall, it was an amazing event which was extremely well organised. The standard of kendo was high both in terms of technique and spirit. Below you can read the reflections of all three StAKC members who were there. Like most kendoka, they talk a lot about their failings. This display of humility should not distract from the fact that Mark and Min-Ho did very well. Being beaten at some stage is not a bad thing if you have given your best.

Mark

 On the 20th and 21st March, Michael, Min Ho and I attended the British  University Taikai 2010, this year hosted by Edinburgh University.  Saturday the 20th was the team competition, and Min Ho and I were lucky  enough to secure places on the York/Oxford and SOAS teams, respectively.
While my team was quickly eliminated by the teams who would go on to  the final, I enjoyed fighting once more as part of a team and the  camaraderie that goes with it, especially as the ladies individuals was won by my teammate Eri Fujioka. Sunday the 21st was the day of the men’s individuals. Again I was eliminated in the pools, but unlike the day before I was rather disappointed with my kendo. However the hour of keiko to finish (which included keiko with Salmon Sensei and Cho Sensei) helped me to learn of and from my mistakes.

Min-Ho

The foremost thing I realized through the competition at Edinburgh is the self-evident truth; to practice harder is the only way to overcome my frailty and beat the opponent’s forte. Moreover, I realized again that I can’t take full advantage of a chance and consequently fulfil my duty imposed as a team member if I am not prepared sufficiently.

At the team Taikai, I joined the Oxford team composed of two Oxford and another two York university students and we succeeded in breaking through the first round and had a quarterfinal match with the Imperial College. In the match, surprisingly all 5 members tied and hence one player from each team should fight to decide the winner. It was me who assumed the responsibility for bringing our team up to the semi-final and I tried to do my best. My opponent’s attack was simple but so fast and incessant that I couldn’t get the perfect chance. After a good time elapsed, my final idea was to bait him with showing my Koti. Fortunately he swallowed the bait and undoubtedly it was the perfect chance. However, I failed to hit his men with a correct posture and strong impact since I was already exhausted by the long rally. My concentration was collapsing. The match ended in my defeat and I felt guilty of letting the other team members down.

All in all, the experiences in the Taikai ware really precious in that I could check my mentality and physical state to realize what is to be done not to commit a same mistake as one I did on this occasion.

If there is one more thing to tell, it is the importance of teamwork. Even though I am not satisfied with my performance, it is clear that I could not have done that well without the team members’ cheer and trust on me. That said, I appreciate again their passionate and friendly companionship.

Finally I want to express my gratitude to Michael and the members of the Yugenkai Dojo at Dunfermline, Kristian and Dez for the hearty supports at the Taikai site.

Michael

The first thing I need to get off my chest is that both Mark and Min-Ho did very well. Min-Ho was chosen by his adopted team to do the fight off and his kendo was superb. After a long and hard fight he allowed himself one split second of absent-mindedness which his opponent used quickly and efficiently.

Regarding my own performance as a referee, I can only ask all fighters to continue to be patient with me. It is one thing to watch a match and to have an opinion. It is already a very different experience to act as fukushin. I think I saw most cuts and - although I was too stingy with the points - my decisions as fukushin were generally sound. Acting as shushin or head referee on the court - on the other hand - is much harder than you would expect. On more than one occasion I got quite confused with the flags and verbal commands. I even let two fighters do encho when there was no encho. All in all, it was a hard couple of days but worth the while. The learning curve is steep and I am now more confident as a referee than I was before. My thanks go to Salmon sensei, Cho sensei and Bishop sensei for their encouragement and feedback.

The more enjoyable part of the weekend (apart from watching great kendo) were the two sessions of free sparring. On day one, I fought a number of people on my level and slightly higher which helped me let off some steam. On the second day, I had the chance to fight a number of sensei who put me truly in the right place.

It was a fabulous weekend of kendo and our thanks and congratulations go to Edinburgh University Kendo Club.