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Today I will compete in the All-Japan championships as a warm-up for the World Cup on Sunday. I am worried about my back injury and although it is feeling better, I am concerned that during the Kata performances I may put it back to where it was two weeks previously.

The journey is another two hours to get to the Tokyo Budokan which is the new one, not the one in the Imperial Palace which is now not used as much for modern tournaments. The new one is a very odd looking building with its entire roof made from sheets of solar energy retaining glass set at various angles to capture the suns rays at anytime of the day. It just might be no mistake that the building looks distinctly military. As we walk towards the building there are a hundred or so people lined up at the entrance waiting to be registered and to exchange their shoes for little Japanese flip-flop things because shoes are not permitted inside the building. Just inside there is a very large reception area full of Karate-Ka, hundreds. At least 75% are either Japanese or Asian – very few ‘Gaigin’. Sensei disappears to the officials meeting room and I wander off to explore for a while.

Shot of the new Budokan with its glass sheets.

The energy that was heavy in the atmosphere was slightly claustrophobic at first, especially in one of the side Dojos that surround the main hall. I went down a long corridor to the sound of Kiai and saw that there were maybe 150 or so Karate-Ka practicing and sparring in a very large dojo covered in Tatami. There were mainly teenagers around High-School age and then some smaller kids and a few adults. But the Toridei students exhibited a very fierce fighting spirit – it would have been difficult to enter that Dojo and not get swept up in the emotion and pure determination of these students. I was surprised at how simple the fighting techniques and approach were – just straight-line attacking as fast as possible with little or no demonstration of Wado-Ryu Tai-Sabaki. This is All-Japan fighting style for open tournaments I am told, but I don’t like what I see. Sure it’s fast and furious, but it could be any style!

I made my way to the bleachers where I spotted the Italian and British teams who I joined for a while. We all changed together into our Gis in time for the opening ceremony which was a line-up and march-in of all the competitors and there coaches. Then there followed a short speech by the Chief Referee of the day and then a speech by the Grandmaster, Jiro Ohtsuka. The bleachers were by now almost full to capacity of supporters, parents and competitors.

First, the children’s section commenced, which included a run-through to the finals of the Kata and then the Kumite. All youths and children wear full face and head protection as well as torso protectors similar to those in modern Kendo. After watching some of the spirited fighting, I was left wondering if it was a good idea at all since the kids did not seem to mind really whacking each other around. I saw a number of kids get their whole head jolted back – not too good for the cervical spine!

Then the adult divisions commenced. By far and away the most impressive fighters were those from Nichi-Dai University who displayed both excellent athleticism as well as the kind of completely overpowering confidence that only comes from extremely hard training. Most interesting were the fights of the Nichi-Dai captain, who although obviously a little overweight, was able to control his opponents with his fighting spirit and pick them off at will almost. A very calm, determined and impressive fighter who certainly wasted no energy, restraining all his movements to effective, scoring techniques including a simple sweep, reverse punch combination which never seemed to miss and a very sharp Nagashizuki that everyone knew would come but were powerless to stop. He went on to become the All Japan Champion. Unfortunately, all the Europeans and Americans got knocked out pretty early. It seemed very hard for them to get a score. It was also very obvious that face punches, kicks and strikes would not score without being absolutely decisive by either rocking the opponents head or in the case of a Chudan Geri - knocking him down. There were almost no sweeps or throws at all.

The rules adopted for the day were the old Sanbon Shobu (three point win) or in other words, the old WUKO rules (pre-WKF). I asked Shiomitsu Sensei about this and he just said that they were rules that suited true Budo better. He said he thought that the WKF had become far too sport orientated but I am not sure about this at all.

Then the Kata tournament commenced. There were 47 entries and many of those were us ‘Gaigin’ from all around Europe and America. While warming-up I could not help notice that many of the competitors were making simple mistakes in their Kata which gave me great comfort since I had been working very hard on the detailing of my Kata over the previous month or so having completed the heavy practice. The reigning world champion looked very sharp but again I noticed several details that were not right at all.

First, we had to perform Shitei Kata – Chinto and then Seishan. Although I made it through to the next round, I was stunned by the marking and wondered what was going on. Another Wado Academy Kata Champion, Mathew Soanes from Britain, failed to score highly despite what I thought was a very good performance. We talked before the next round which he was unable to make it through to and he just said to me “Welcome to Japan, Tyrone!” Anyway, I was not that concerned since it was only a warm up for the next day – the World-Cup. I just wanted to get a feel for the floor and see how the marking was going and what kind of Kata was scoring highly and what was not. But I was not prepared to be thrown into total doubt about what I had been practicing for many years under my Senseis Iwasaki and Shiomitsu! The Kata that was scoring highly was more like Shotokan to me than Wado. I did not make it past the second round. Iwasaki Sensei had been watching from the officials table with Noburo Suzuki Sensei and he came across the floor to me and said that he was sorry, my Kata looked good and relaxed and that Noburo Suzuki Sensei said it was very good, but he could not explain what had gone wrong.

I was worried. It was not my back that was going to be the problem – it was my style of Kata! Here I was in Japan, the heart of Karate as I thought and I am questioning everything I have been taught. Being rational, I thought, well, perhaps they only want Japanese to win the nationals and fobbed it off thinking that the World Cup would be different, but underneath it all, I was still worried.

It was 7 pm and it had been a very long day. I was starving, jet lagged, disappointed and my back was sore. “Noburo Suzuki Sensei wants to go eat. Be changed in five minutes – we do not keep Sensei Suzuki waiting!” Iwasaki Sensei told me abruptly. I changed and was out into the hall within three minutes and was handed Suzuki Sensei’s bags and told to follow “Stay behind Tyrone, its bad manners to go in front.” But I don’t mind because Suzuki Sensei is a real gem. He started training at 5 years old and he was now 76. He is a sword, Karate, Jujitsu, Judo and Kendo Master. So, we strolled off down the road amongst the crowds leaving the Budokan behind us and crossed the street to a little Sushi bar complete with revolving conveyor belt chalk-o-block full of delicious looking Sushi. Sensei orders beer straight away to which Suzuki Sensei smiles and makes a sort of ‘drinking’ sign to me. He told Sensei Iwasaki to tell me that my Kata was good. I explained to Sensei Iwasaki that I was disappointed and that the Kata today seemed unlike what we were practicing in Europe or in the Grandmaster’s Dojo that week. Suzuki Sensei said to keep training the way I had been – that it was the right way. Wado-Ryu Karate Kata must be relaxed he said, it must be a continuous flow of movement, not robot Kata like Shotokan. He said that these competitions make no sense. Then he drank his pint of Sopporo in two big gulps and smiled.

Noburo Suzuki Sensei & Iwasaki Sensei in the Sushi bar after the tournament.

During our meal he explained all the different ways to apply Kote Gaeshi. He showed a method where pressure points in the back of the hand are used to assist the technique and take the opponent down quicker. Sensei Iwasaki indicated that he was uncertain about how it worked so he decided to demonstrate asking Sensei Iwasaki to stand up. And then without any effort at all, Sensei Iwasaki is suddenly sprawled out on the ground with Noburo Suzuki Sensei applying pressure to his wrist and to the back of his hand nonchalantly as if he were just holding a child’s hand while crossing the road. No one in the restaurant seemed to mind, they hardly even looked up. I asked Sensei later in the Japanese baths at the hotel why it was that no one seemed to mind the demonstration of Jujitsu in the restaurant and he said it was because the restaurant was only around the corner from the Budokan, so they get all sorts in there, and they knew Suzuki Sensei.

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	Japan Diary, Saturday 17th August 2002 Today I will compete in the All-Japan championships as a warm-up for the World Cup on Sunday. I am worried about my back injury and although it is feeling better, I am concerned that during the Kata performances I may put it back to where it was two weeks previously. The journey is another two hours to get to the Tokyo Budokan which is the new one, not the one in the Imperial Palace which is now not used as much for modern tournaments. The new one is a very odd looking building with its entire roof made from sheets of solar energy retaining glass set at various angles to capture the suns rays at anytime of the day. It just might be no mistake that the building looks distinctly military. As we walk towards the building there are a hundred or so people lined up at the entrance waiting to be registered and to exchange their shoes for little Japanese flip-flop things because shoes are not permitted inside the building. Just inside there is a very large reception area full of Karate-Ka, hundreds. At least 75% are either Japanese or Asian – very few ‘Gaigin’. Sensei disappears to the officials meeting room and I wander off to explore for a while. Shot of the new Budokan with its glass sheets. The energy that was heavy in the atmosphere was slightly claustrophobic at first, especially in one of the side Dojos that surround the main hall. I went down a long corridor to the sound of Kiai and saw that there were maybe 150 or so Karate-Ka practicing and sparring in a very large dojo covered in Tatami. There were mainly teenagers around High-School age and then some smaller kids and a few adults. But the Toridei students exhibited a very fierce fighting spirit – it would have been difficult to enter that Dojo and not get swept up in the emotion and pure determination of these students. I was surprised at how simple the fighting techniques and approach were – just straight-line attacking as fast as possible with little or no demonstration of Wado-Ryu Tai-Sabaki. This is All-Japan fighting style for open tournaments I am told, but I don’t like what I see. Sure it’s fast and furious, but it could be any style! I made my way to the bleachers where I spotted the Italian and British teams who I joined for a while. We all changed together into our Gis in time for the opening ceremony which was a line-up and march-in of all the competitors and there coaches. Then there followed a short speech by the Chief Referee of the day and then a speech by the Grandmaster, Jiro Ohtsuka. The bleachers were by now almost full to capacity of supporters, parents and competitors. First, the children’s section commenced, which included a run-through to the finals of the Kata and then the Kumite. All youths and children wear full face and head protection as well as torso protectors similar to those in modern Kendo. After watching some of the spirited fighting, I was left wondering if it was a good idea at all since the kids did not seem to mind really whacking each other around. I saw a number of kids get their whole head jolted back – not too good for the cervical spine! Then the adult divisions commenced. By far and away the most impressive fighters were those from Nichi-Dai University who displayed both excellent athleticism as well as the kind of completely overpowering confidence that only comes from extremely hard training. Most interesting were the fights of the Nichi-Dai captain, who although obviously a little overweight, was able to control his opponents with his fighting spirit and pick them off at will almost. A very calm, determined and impressive fighter who certainly wasted no energy, restraining all his movements to effective, scoring techniques including a simple sweep, reverse punch combination which never seemed to miss and a very sharp Nagashizuki that everyone knew would come but were powerless to stop. He went on to become the All Japan Champion. Unfortunately, all the Europeans and Americans got knocked out pretty early. It seemed very hard for them to get a score. It was also very obvious that face punches, kicks and strikes would not score without being absolutely decisive by either rocking the opponents head or in the case of a Chudan Geri - knocking him down. There were almost no sweeps or throws at all. The rules adopted for the day were the old Sanbon Shobu (three point win) or in other words, the old WUKO rules (pre-WKF). I asked Shiomitsu Sensei about this and he just said that they were rules that suited true Budo better. He said he thought that the WKF had become far too sport orientated but I am not sure about this at all. Then the Kata tournament commenced. There were 47 entries and many of those were us ‘Gaigin’ from all around Europe and America. While warming-up I could not help notice that many of the competitors were making simple mistakes in their Kata which gave me great comfort since I had been working very hard on the detailing of my Kata over the previous month or so having completed the heavy practice. The reigning world champion looked very sharp but again I noticed several details that were not right at all. First, we had to perform Shitei Kata – Chinto and then Seishan. Although I made it through to the next round, I was stunned by the marking and wondered what was going on. Another Wado Academy Kata Champion, Mathew Soanes from Britain, failed to score highly despite what I thought was a very good performance. We talked before the next round which he was unable to make it through to and he just said to me “Welcome to Japan, Tyrone!” Anyway, I was not that concerned since it was only a warm up for the next day – the World-Cup. I just wanted to get a feel for the floor and see how the marking was going and what kind of Kata was scoring highly and what was not. But I was not prepared to be thrown into total doubt about what I had been practicing for many years under my Senseis Iwasaki and Shiomitsu! The Kata that was scoring highly was more like Shotokan to me than Wado. I did not make it past the second round. Iwasaki Sensei had been watching from the officials table with Noburo Suzuki Sensei and he came across the floor to me and said that he was sorry, my Kata looked good and relaxed and that Noburo Suzuki Sensei said it was very good, but he could not explain what had gone wrong. I was worried. It was not my back that was going to be the problem – it was my style of Kata! Here I was in Japan, the heart of Karate as I thought and I am questioning everything I have been taught. Being rational, I thought, well, perhaps they only want Japanese to win the nationals and fobbed it off thinking that the World Cup would be different, but underneath it all, I was still worried. It was 7 pm and it had been a very long day. I was starving, jet lagged, disappointed and my back was sore. “Noburo Suzuki Sensei wants to go eat. Be changed in five minutes – we do not keep Sensei Suzuki waiting!” Iwasaki Sensei told me abruptly. I changed and was out into the hall within three minutes and was handed Suzuki Sensei’s bags and told to follow “Stay behind Tyrone, its bad manners to go in front.” But I don’t mind because Suzuki Sensei is a real gem. He started training at 5 years old and he was now 76. He is a sword, Karate, Jujitsu, Judo and Kendo Master. So, we strolled off down the road amongst the crowds leaving the Budokan behind us and crossed the street to a little Sushi bar complete with revolving conveyor belt chalk-o-block full of delicious looking Sushi. Sensei orders beer straight away to which Suzuki Sensei smiles and makes a sort of ‘drinking’ sign to me. He told Sensei Iwasaki to tell me that my Kata was good. I explained to Sensei Iwasaki that I was disappointed and that the Kata today seemed unlike what we were practicing in Europe or in the Grandmaster’s Dojo that week. Suzuki Sensei said to keep training the way I had been – that it was the right way. Wado-Ryu Karate Kata must be relaxed he said, it must be a continuous flow of movement, not robot Kata like Shotokan. He said that these competitions make no sense. Then he drank his pint of Sopporo in two big gulps and smiled. Noburo Suzuki Sensei & Iwasaki Sensei in the Sushi bar after the tournament. During our meal he explained all the different ways to apply Kote Gaeshi. He showed a method where pressure points in the back of the hand are used to assist the technique and take the opponent down quicker. Sensei Iwasaki indicated that he was uncertain about how it worked so he decided to demonstrate asking Sensei Iwasaki to stand up. And then without any effort at all, Sensei Iwasaki is suddenly sprawled out on the ground with Noburo Suzuki Sensei applying pressure to his wrist and to the back of his hand nonchalantly as if he were just holding a child’s hand while crossing the road. No one in the restaurant seemed to mind, they hardly even looked up. I asked Sensei later in the Japanese baths at the hotel why it was that no one seemed to mind the demonstration of Jujitsu in the restaurant and he said it was because the restaurant was only around the corner from the Budokan, so they get all sorts in there, and they knew Suzuki Sensei. next

Japan Diary, Saturday 17th August 2002