Recently
and with your kind donations, the USEWF attended two
Tournaments in Japan sponsored by Grand Master Otsuka.
Our team participated in both tournaments. Each
team member has been kind enough to write about their
experiences while in Japan.
Sensei Jimmy Edwards
I am pleased to share my experiences with you during my
visit to Japan the week of August 17, 2009 to compete in
both the 7th Wado International Tournament
and the 45th Wado National Tournament.
Mr. Oriley, the Browns, and I all stayed at the Monterey
Hanzomon Hotel in a business district of Tokyo, simply
because our travel agent booked us near the Budokan
where the tournament was to be held. He told us that
the Budokan was a short 20 minute walk from our hotel,
so naturally when we walked to the Japan Budokan that
Friday morning to scope out the venue where workers were
unloading and setting creates of tables and chairs and
partitions, we had no doubt that we were at the
tournament location. We asked to take a peek inside but
were denied entrance so we left to spend 3 hours trying
to find our way back to our hotel. Each time we tried to
communicate with store clerks, pedestrians, and police
officers on how to get back to our hotel, we got unclear
directions. There was one time where 2 police officers
standing next to one another simultaneously pointed in
opposite directions. After walking around for nearly 4
hours, we then admitted that we were lost, gave up, and
took a taxi back to the hotel some 3 miles away.
The next morning, Mr. Kelch who was staying in another
hotel met us in our hotel lobby, and escorted us to the
subway at the Hanzomon station. After riding the subway
for 10 minutes, we realized that we were not going to
the same place as yesterday, but to a different place,
the Tokyo Budokan, some 10 miles from our hotel. Our
travel agent booked our hotel room near the wrong
Budokan.
I found it interesting that most Japanese men all wear
the same clothing; black pants and white dress shirt in
the business districts. The school girls look dapper
with their matching plaid checkered gray skirts, tie,
and shiny loafers. The young women are very fashionable
with their dress, looking like Barbie dolls. The
Japanese are very proud , and rather indifferent to our
presence as we walked along the streets and subways. I
was surprised that they would not make eye contact with
us, but I eventually realized that they were indifferent
to one another, as well. I am very impressed with the
fact that when walking the streets at night, one feels
safe from crime. There were times that at night we
walked passed an unescorted Japanese woman on a dark
street, and I could sense that we were unimposing and
non-threatening to her. I was very impressed with the
clean subways and the absence of graffiti on the walls,
and how the Japanese conduct themselves with little or
no horseplay or annoyingly loud talking. I wish that
Nashville had a subway system that stretched out to our
suburbs. I was also impressed to see how the Japanese
form an orderly single line to access the escalator. I
did not know that tipping was not accepted. We tried to
leave money on the table, but were chased down by the
waiter and given our money back.
The night of the 1st day of the tournament,
we were invited to attend a banquet. I did not drink
any alcohol since I would be competing the next morning,
but noticed how the older Japanese (judges) were
relaxing more around us as they drank more beer. That
night Kazutaka called out each country and had us come
up on stage to be introduced to the crowd, consisting of
competitors, judges, and dignitaries, that included the
Grand Master, Osaka, and Shiomitsu. The 1st
day of the tournament, we all lined up in front of the
Grand Master and bowed in as we do at our own Federation
tournament.
The 45th Wado National tournament was held on
Saturday, Aug. 22 and the 7th International
tournament was held on Sunday, Aug. 23 at the Tokyo
Budokan.
Competing on this level is stressful enough, but when
you arrive to the tournament location discovering that
the paper number you are required to wear on the back of
your gi jacket is not furnished with either safety pins
or sticky adhesive tape, then you freak out trying to
tape your number on the back of your soaking wet gi
after having sweated like a stuck hog from warming up.
The athletic tape we carried would not stick to my wet
gi. I went back to the check-in desk and asked for some
sticky tape, since safety pins were not allowed. A
Japanese man who spoke very little English pointed me to
the door and indicated that a store was within 4 city
blocks that sold tape. I ran and got my shoes on, since
I was expecting to be called for kata in 30 minutes, ran
out the door and went into a convenience store about a
quarter mile from the tournament in full gi and belt,
running up and down the aisle looking for tape. The
clerk could not understand what I wanted, so I ran out
and went into another store. This clerk understood a
little English, and took me to the aisle where tape was
sold, but was completely sold out. I ran out the door to
another store down the street to find that they were
sold out, too. I ran back to the Budokan and went up to
the Japanese lady at the front desk indicating that I
needed tape. She left and came back in 3 minutes with 2
needles and thread, motioned for me to take off my gi
jacket, and then she and another Japanese lady, without
haste both started sewing my number on the back of my gi.
I made it just in time to be called to my ring.
The 1st day of the tournament was the 45th
National Tournament, and mostly Japanese competitors in
kata. There were 51 kata competitors divided up in 4
rings, with 12 to 13 competitors per ring. Each ring had
5 judges, one center judge and 4 corner judges. In my
ring all of the judges were Japanese, as were most of
the judges who all wore blue blazers, white shirts &
tie, and dark gray dress slacks. We were lined up on
opposite sides of our ring and paired off, bowed in,
were then called out in pairs to the center of the
ring. My side wore a blue belt and the opposing side
wore red. I faced my competitor who was Japanese, walked
along the outside edge of the ring to mid center, turned
toward the center judge, bowed, then turned to my
opposition, exchanged bows, then turned back to the
center judge and entered the ring, bowing again and
announcing Chinto, our 1st kata to be
performed, opening and waiting for the center judge to
blow his whistle. Hearing the whistle, I ran my kata at
the usual pace that I practice, and was well ahead of my
competitor, and finished several seconds ahead; not to
be a race. After my competitor completed his kata, the
center judge blew his whistle for each corner judge to
raise either the red flag or the blue flag. Each judge
including the center judge raised the blue flag. We
bowed out and I was advanced to the 2nd round. I was
preparing to run Seishan, the 2nd kata, but
soon found out that we were to run Chinto again. We
were lined up again, this time I wore red. In my second
match, I was eliminated in the 2nd round.
The next day was the 7th International
tournament, with 26 kata competitors; of which only a
few surprisingly were Japanese. Most were from other
countries. Four rings were formed with 6 to 7
competitors per ring. Instead of running kata in pairs,
we ran Chinto, our 1st kata to be performed,
individually. I was the 1st competitor in my
ring to be called out and did not advance to the next
round. I was very disappointed because the scores were
very close, and I felt that my Seishan would have
carried me into the final 8 after having seen everyone
else’s Seishan.
It was good to see that kata by the Japanese and other
countries including France and Italy are being performed
the same way we practice them.
I was proud to represent our US Eastern Wado Ryu
Federation team in kata, and was very proud to be on a
team that performed brilliantly in their fighting. My
congratulations are extended to my fellow teammates, Mr.
Bill Kelch, Mr. Steve Oriley, Mr. Melvin Brown, Mr.
Melvin Peanut Brown, Mr. Josh Brown, and Mr. Matt Brown,
all of whom performed exceptionally well, and I can
attest that both Japan and all the other countries
represented will not forget that we were there.
I also want to thank Mr. Wolfe and all of you who so
graciously contributed to our trip.
Best Regards,
Jimmy Edwards