41st All Japan Championships was
held in Tokyo on November 21 and 22. The history of this
long-running tournament goes back to 60's and has been held in
Japan to determine the year's strongest fighter in the Karate
Motherland.
Sempai Michi
Nagase from our dojo competed in this prestigious competition
and won his first fight. During his second match, Sempai Michi
was doing very well. But towards the end of the match, his
opponent came back with powerful punches and gain control of the
fight.
When you talk
about a tournament, how you fought, of course, matters a lot.
But the fact that Sempai Michi is the first fighter, who started
Kyokushin in Canada, to compete in the All Japan Championships
since Shihan Don and Shihan Stuart did in the early 80's tells
you that this was a very historical moment of our club.
Sempai Michi has a
full-time job and a family to support with a newborn baby. From
time to time, it gets very hard for him to find time for
training, not to mention traveling abroad for international
tournaments. But he sets his goals high and never stops until he
gets there. His attitude brings a silent message to young
students of our dojo. It is always easy to find a reason to
stop. Instead, try to find a reason to continue. As long as you
stick with it, you are bound to progress. You have a great
example right at your dojo.
We would like to
thank Shihan Stuart, Sensei Terry, Sensei Brad, Sensei Patrick
and Sensei Taku for their support of Sempai Michi at the
tournament. Osu!
Tats Nakamura
Tournament Results
1. Kentaro Tanaka
2. Alejandro Navarro (SPAIN)
3. Makoto Akaishi
4. Hiroyuki Kidachi
5. Darmen Sadvokasov (RUSSIA)
6. Yoshitatsu Beppu
7. Zenjyuro Mori
8. Eduardo Tanaka (BRAZIL)
