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Articles:

Reports:

Juniors:

Shizentai 1Newsletter/Journal of the British Aikido Association

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Editor’s page ContentsWelcome to the first issue ofShizentai, the BAA’s newnewsletter and hopefully with anexpansion of historical andtheoretical articles, its journal.

Shizentai appears at a time ofmuch dramatic change withinthe Tomiki Aikido community.Older certainties have beenswept away by a deep andseemingly unbridgeable schismwithin the JAA.

Nariyama Shihan and ShishidaShihan, hitherto the twintechnical pillars of the JAA havedramatically quarrelled over thefuture direction of the TomikiAikido project. This division ofinterpretation by the two shihansand their respective supportershas led to a split in JAA ranks.Nariyama Shihan now headsinternationally his ownShodokan Aikido Federation,and within Japan the All JapanSports Aikido Association. WhileMasako Tomiki, with the supportof Shishida Shihan and otherscontinues with the JAA andTAIN.

The BAA deeply regrets thecurrent situation, believing thatboth Nariyama and ShishidaShihans have much tocontribute to the BAA and thewider Tomiki Aikido movement.In line with BAA policy thispublication will campaign forunity at international level tore-establish one unified worldchampionships.

It has been the BAA’s belief thatwe should work towards anOlympic future. This cannot beachieved without a worldgoverning body. We recognisethat Tomiki Aikido is small andfractured. However we believehaving a long term Olympic goalcan help to heal divisions andiron out technical differences inhealthy competition. SurelyTomiki Shihan’s intention.

While this publication willpromote the policy of the BAA,it also intends to be a platformfor free debate and interchangebetween the membership. Giveus your news and your views.We wish to foster the BAA as atruly collaborative organisationthat is supportive of the fullestexpression of its membership’sopinions and ideas.

We also welcome contributionsfrom our partners in the TomikiAikido movement. This issuesees articles from Itsuo Haba ofthe JAA and Gitte Wolput of theBelgian Shobukai, one of ourETAN partners. Gitte will also becontributing to our next issue.

Please give us news from allover the world and we will shareit as far as we can reach.However, Shizentai will not be aplatform for partisan squabblesand we reserve the right topublish only articles that make apositive contribution to theTomiki Aikido community as awhole. Please read on andhopefully enjoy our first issue.

Editor: Paul Wildish all correspondence andcontributions to shizentai@aikido-baa.org.ukPublished by the British Aikido Associationwebsite www.aikido-baa.org.uk

Reports3 BAA Winter School

4 Fumika Yamasaki UK Tour

5 European Aikido Tournament

14 Easter at Margate

Articles7 How to perform at your best?

9 Sugamo Toshu Randori

News8 New BAA fees

13 British National Team Honoured

13 JAA News

15 ETAN 2014

Juniors & Youth11 New Junior Syllabus

12 Aikido Youth Award Scheme

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ReportsBAA Winter School

The BAA winter school at theEnglish Institute of Sport,Sheffield provided anopportunity to practice under twoworld-class coaches LesleyHepden and Fumika Yamasakiably supported by AyakaNakashima, Vanda Fairchild andMick Pratt. Over sixtypractitioners attended theweekend, which on the Saturdayfocused on the technicalapplications of the kneeling andstanding sections of the DaiRoku.

The Dai Roku is an interestingand intricate sequence oftechniques with underlyingsubtleties expertly explored byLesley Hepden. The day wasintense but rewarding and allwho took part thoroughlyenjoyed the content and delivery.

Recognised to be the mostcomplicated and difficult Koryu-no-Kata. This is the only one oftwo Kata, which includesweapons. It is the only Koryu-no-Kata to include techniqueswhere Tori (or Toshu) are armedwith the knife (Tanto).

BAA winter School NorthSaturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd March

Candidates should show slow,smooth and flowing kneelingtechniques. The speed of thestanding techniques shouldsteadily increase and end in acrescendo. The whole Katashould be demonstrated withsoft, flowing, gracefullymovements.

Fumika provided an excellentdemonstration that was highlyinformative and enjoyable. Thesession incorporated manyaspects of traditional Aikidowithin a modern framework. Ahighlight was Tanto avoidanceNinin Dori style, providing for adynamic and exhilaratingexercise.Following the course was a BAADan and Kyu grading with overtwenty-five candidates at all

levels. Adrian Tipling 5 Dan, withPaul Holding 5 Dan and RobHartshorne 4 Dan, headed theDan grade panel. Bob Jones 7Dan, Mick Pratt 4 Dan and LeeMazacs 2 Dan undertook the kyugrading. Overall the standardwas good and the majority ofcandidates were successful intheir endeavors. The syllabus,whilst maintaining a balancebetween kata and freeplay, muststill be seen as a tool to extractfrom the candidates aperformance that demonstratesthat they understand theunderlying principles of TomikiAikido.

Anyone can read Shakespearebut only a seasoned performercan demonstrate

Congratulations to memberswho achieved Dan grades on theSaturday at the BAA NationalDan Grading including MarkJenner 2 Dan Leeds, TomHoughton 2 Dan, EPIC, Jon Paul2 Dan, Jugokan, John Parker 1Dan, Leeds.

Fumika Yamasaki & Danielle Jones

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Reports

This is a brief report on the verywell received tour of the UK byFumika Yamasaki Sensei andAyaka Nakashima, two studentsof Nariyama Shihan at SAFhonbu in Osaka.

I attended three of their courses:at Dartford Judo Club, ThomasTallis Leisure Centre inKidbrooke and at BrightonUniversity dojo.The distinguishing point of theShodokan system which FumikaSensei was here to exemplify inher coaching, is the criticalrelationship betweenfundamental principles andpractice. Without kihon, kata andrandori, our applied techniquesand sport randori will beineffective, thin in content.However if students practicetheir kihon in a focused way andregularly, they will then developthe same focus in the way theyapply their techniques.  When itcomes to randori there will belots of ideas in a free-flowingmushin mugamae approach.

A particularly interesting part ofthe course for me and thestudents I spoke to, was the wayFumika Sensei explained how topractice the kihon kozo (all thebasic techniques) in ameaningful way, using accuratemovement and trying to make itperfect. We realise that

perfection is not possible, butthere is no need not try.Her efforts should encourage usin the UK to keep revisiting thisapproach to training and notthink it is something we do whenwe're with internationalinstructors. People often cometo courses like this, pick up theinformation then on the wayback to their dojo, it slips away.Then if you look to 3 monthslater, it's disappeared from theirpractice. One of the things thatFumika Sensei did was get us tounderstand that this approach totraining is not ‘optional’, it’s theway to train to get good all roundaikido skills and attitude. Anexample is the great importanceof practising the go no sen nokuzushi (8 balance breakingtechniques) every class.

There is often talk that we cherrypick what we want and thenleave the rest. One of things yourealise in this practice is thatcherry picking doesn't work aseverything fits together -  if onepart is missing the rest of it isdisjointed: like trying to run a carwith a cylinder continuallymisfiring.  It sort of works but is‘uncomfortable’.

You probably hope I will talkabout actual techniques but Idon't think this is necessary.Those that came on the coursewill know how brilliant they were;nothing fancy, just very tidy!

What they showed is anapproach to learning...it is aboutyour own study; not being toldwhat to do all the time, but takeit inside and make it an essentialpart of your training yourself.

Suffice to say they taught inLondon, Sheffield, York,Edinburgh and Brighton. Theywere very well looked after by allthe Senseis and students at allthe places they visited. They toldme they had the most fantastictime in UK and can't wait tocome back.

Rest assured that on their lastnight in the UK they had a greattime. We took them for a mealwith about 25 or so peopleturning up and then took them toa proper traditional English pubfor a few beers. They loved itand we got them on the planethe next day back to Japan.Since their return to Japan Ihave received a very nice emailfrom Nariyama Shihan thankingeveryone for the way we lookedafter his great sportswomen.This course was almost 4 yearsin turning from a dream to areality.  Let's hope the next onedoes not take quite so long!

Fumika Yamasaki

Fumika YamasakiUK Tour by Paul Bonett

Fumika Yamasaki

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Reports

Switzerland? Well I thought itwould all be snow, hot chocolateand Aikido, and I was right!I had arrived early Friday withmy Aiki partner, Ellie, plussisters, brothers, grandparents,mums and dads, coach and way,way too much luggage, at Fiesch

railway station. The train journeyhad been a laugh; some madSwiss conductor had run off thetrain with my sister’s suitcase atone point, (we never found outwhy), but he did kindly stop thetrain especially for us. Fieschitself was beautiful, mountainviews, gorgeous quaint chalets,inviting little cafes and of coursethe Co-op! We were luckyenough to be staying on campusand I was looking forward to alie in on competition day for achange. Ha! I should haveknown better. The thing about ateam is that there are usuallyone or two really noisy members.

We had great fun allocating ourrooms; well I think it would havebeen fun for the adults if any of

them had spoken the samelanguage as Pierre, the Swisscoach, but with Pierre’s patienceand lots of drawings and handsignals everybody got a key anda room. Meanwhile anotherproblem was brewing. A fewfamilies had turned up

independently, like us, but themajority of the team were allflying out from Liverpool togetherand sadly they were still inEngland, three hours after theirflight was due to leave! We werehappily reunited at one o’clockin the morning when they allarrived, I was pleased to the seethem really. Perhaps I just didn’tshow it.And the games began.#Thehungergames

It was a competition morning likeno other. The TV went on toreveal Shaun the Sheep inGerman at 7 am, which truly wasone of the most bizarre andunusual moments of my life, butit did free the bathroom of all theboys(mentioning no names), so

that I could do my hair. We allwent to breakfast together,which was our first team bondingmoment when we were facedwith salami and yoghurt andwarm milk in jugs with chocolatepowder in plastic bowls, muchlike a school canteen.Twenty minutes later I was veryproud to be walking down thepath in a sky blue WestYorkshire Aikido top. I swearthere wasn’t another colour formiles. I felt really comfortableand confident with all my friendsaround me. I do hope they feltthe same.

Seeing people I knew from theLondon World Championshipscalmed any last minute nerves.The familiar faces made it seemjust like any other competition.Many people have asked me if Iwas nervous and I can honestlysay I wasn’t, being around somany of your friends made it asnormal as it could have possiblybeen and I was grateful.Otherwise I would have been acomplete nervous wreckincapable of holding my handstill and definitely not in anyposition to compete.From the moment we took theRei the rest of the day was ablur. Before we went, my ownpersonal ambition, that I didn’ttell anyone, was just to make a

by Millie Bolton

Switzerland 2012

European AikidoTournamentSwitzerland 2012

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European Aikido TournamentSwitzerland 2012 continued

European final. I don’t quiteknow how but I went to bedSaturday night in three finalswhich was more than I had everhoped to achieve.Sunday morning was quitesurreal. It had snowed overnightwhich just made everything moreperfect. The TV had beenunplugged (mysteriously), andthe adults now owned a kettle,tea bags, coffee, milk andbiscuits, creating a much calmeratmosphere. However nothingprepared me for the highs andlows of finals day.

The day began with tantoavoidance. I was a littleapprehensive as this was an

U18’s category and I’m only 14and it was boys and girlstogether. I must say some ofthose Russians were about 6fttall, against my meagre 5ft 3”. Ilost within a few rounds to aRussian girl who was very goodbut this gave me a chance tocheer my team mates on. I justknow how much that helps.Going into the finals afternoonthe West Yorkshire team werelooking in a good position yetbattered and bruised. We hadrepresentation in all the finalswhich I was so proud about butwe had picked up our injuriesalong the way.

by Ellie Gander

On the lead up to Switzerlandeverybody worked extremelyhard and put a lot of effort in toimprove their aikido as much asthey could.

When we arrived in SwitzerlandI was a little worried aboutworking   with people fromdifferent countries because Ididn't know how friendly theywould be. When we actuallybegan the seminar though, Ifound that everybody was reallynice and was happy to train with

you. It was a great way to startthe competition becauseeverybody had a chance to getto know each other before westarted competing.

The competition itself was alsoamazing and the atmospherewas great with everybodycheering and supporting theWest Yorkshire team - itdefinitely encouraged you tokeep going and every time yougot off the mat there would be ahug or high five awaiting you.

Reports

The results. It was brilliant. Theatmosphere was electric. WestYorkshire achieved manymedals in all categories, andwon the trophy for best team.From my own point of view,however, it wasn’t about themedals I had won it was aboutwho I had won them with and thesupport I had received andgiven. It truly was amazing andI really recommend it. We werea team that included anybodywho had wanted to come, thisbeing seven to sixteen year oldsand white to brown belts.We couldn’t have done it withouteach other and the cup belongsto everyone. St.Petersberg herewe come!

The West Yorkshire team wasvery successful at thecompetition and we actuallyended up winning the mostevents. It was an amazingexperience and I have comeaway with some brilliantmemories, some friends from allover Europe and I feel muchcloser to all of the members ofthe West Yorkshire team. I amvery proud to have been part ofsuch a great team andcompetition and can't wait untilthe next one!

West Yorkshire Gang!

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If you go to a championship andthere are 100 participants, therecan only be 1 champion...However, this does not meanthat there can only be 1 winner,since winning is not only aboutcomparing yourself to others. Itis about comparing yourself to

yourself, about improving yourskills and reaching your personalgoals. How to get the most outof yourself? How to perform atyour best? Sport psychology hassome answers.

1. Train your brain!Have you ever noticed howsuccessfull randori players areable to react very quickly whena possibility arises to apply somewaza or a strike with the tanto?You might call this timing,psychologists call this a veryefficient “informationprocessing”.

Information processing is theprocess in which your brainperceives certain cues from theenvironment (e.g. actions from

your opponent), quickly decideswhat to do and gives instructionsto your muscles to execute thiscommand. In skillful martialartists and wrestlers, thisprocess is very fast. Some evencall it automatic.

What do you need to develop(automatic) skills?

Select which cues to focus onand how to react to them. Whatpossibilities or openings are youlooking for and how are yougoing to exploit them? You mighttry to manipulate your opponentin resisting with a pullingmovement. The pulling could bea cue to do a certain technique,e.g. shomen ate or a variation.Or you might focus on the legsof your opponent. The momentyour opponent shifts his weight,might be a cue to do mae otoshi.Don't link to many possiblereactions to one and the samecue. If your brain has too manyoptions, it will react slower.

Practice makes perfect! Withpractice you hard wire theexecution of movements in yourbrain, something thatpsychologists call motorlearning. The more you practice,the more your body starts to actautomatically. Remember: just

being in the dojo doesn’t countas practicetime! To developskills, you have to practice with100% commitment andconcentration. Don’t let yourthoughts wander off.

Did you know that you canenhance your performance byimagining a sequence ofmovements, a technique calledimagery. When you imagine amovement, you use the sameparts of the brain as when youreally execute the movement(more specifically the premotorregions). The “program” forexecuting the movements getshardwired in your brain. Use thiseffect! Mentally rehearse yourcue-response strategy over andover again when you have a

How to perform at your best?

Gitte Wolput and the BAA Squad

Use Sport Psychology by Gitte Wolput

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spare moment (in the train, inthe bathtub, on the toilet, ...).The more you use imagery, thebetter!

Sometimes you think you reactin a certain way, but in realityyou don’t. Such differences canaffect your performance.Feedback from others can helpyou to get more insight into yourbehaviour, which allows you tofine tune the execution programin your head. Also videofeedback, studying your ownmovement on screen, can behelpful.

2. Build self confidence!

Another secret ingredient ofsuccess? Self confidence. Evenif their technical skills andphysique are the same, peoplewho believe that they arecapable of doing it right, aremore likely to do it right thanpeople who do not believe thatthey can succeed. Thinking thatyou cannot succeed is astressful thought that works in adestructive manner. Thinkingthat you can succeed reducesstress, and therefore makes it

more likely that yourperformance will be better.

Tips to boost your selfconfidence:

Self confidence refers to theconfidence you have in reachingcertain goals. The trick is tochoose your goals right. If youset a goal that is very hard toreach, the chance that you willexperience a feeling ofsuccess in the short run is quitesmall. A pity, knowing thatsuccessfull experiences are anecessity to build up selfconfidence. To boost your selfconfidence, set yourself somerealistic short-term goals that willprovide you with regular, “I cando this!” experiences. Such agoal can be anything, e.g.:breaking a persons balance atleast once, not being thrown,making at least 2 tsukiari’s, ... Ifsuccess is not likely to happenwith your current goals, setyourself some new, morereachable goals - or try to reachyour goal with a less difficulttraining partner! With time, youcan make your goals more and

more challenging. Try to endeach training session with afeeling of (at least a little bit) ofsuccess.

Dont be so hard on yourself!If you do something wrong, itdoesn’t help to tell yourself: youclumsy chicken, you cannot doanything right! Such negativecomments have a negativeeffect on your self image. Ifsomething does not work well,don’t start insulting yourself.Look at it as a challenge, as anopportunity for improvement!Tell yourself: I can do this. If notnow, then in the future! Let thisbe a motivation to keep onpracticing!

In the light of fee increasesmade by the British Aikido Boardit has been necessary for theBAA to adjust some chargeswhich will take effect from 1stApril 2013.

1. Junior, Youth andConcessionary rates willincrease from  £15 to  £20 peryear.

2. Adult fees will remain thesame at £30 per year.3. Club registrations will remainthe same at £25 per year but willbe levied per training venue tokeep in line with new insuranceregulations.4. Instructors PI Insurancecontribution will rise from  £10per person per year to £15 perperson per year. The currentactual value is £55 per year.

The BAA Executive apologisefor the short notice andendeavour to keep the cost ofmembership as low aspracticably possible. We thinkthat the new fee structure stillrepresents good value formoney and is still lower thanmost other associations.

Bob Jones Chairman.

New fee increases

Coming in the nextissue - Shizentai 2

How to prepareyourself mentallythe day(s) before acompetition?

The day of thecompetition: howto get “the eye ofthe tiger”?

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Sugamo Toshu Randoriby Itsuo Haba

When I thought up this style ofrandori, the following threepoints were paramount.

1. Safety2. Easier performance of aikido techniques3. Objectivity of techniques and competition

1. SafetyFrom the point of view of schooleducation, safety comes first. Nomatter how good techniques are,we cannot accept thecompetition of aikido under anycircumstances unless it is safe..

2. Easier performance of aikidotechniquesUnder present conditions, it isvery difficult to performtechniques in competition. Weneed a systematic way ofmaking techniques easier toapply. The biggest challenge ishow to show the differencebetween judo and aikidodistances and how to avoidgrappling deadlock situationbetween the competitors.

3. Objectivity of techniques andcompetitionObjectivity is required. Clear“tsukiari” rarely happens, forexample. It is most unusual tosee clear “tuskiari” decided by allthree judges at the same time.In most cases, “tsukiari” isdeclared by the referee who isclosest to the competitor. Inaddition, too many “shidos”seem to be given ambiguously,

at least to spectators. Clearvictory or defeat must bedeclared under clear judgementof techniques.

I would like to introduce SugamoAikido Toshu Randori in order tomeet these three conditions.There are three main intentionsof Sugamo Aikido ToshuRandori.

1. To keep an aikido distance.2. To make it easier to perform aikido techniques.3. To perform techniques according to the opponent’s movement.

1. The competitor wants to takehis opponent’s cap off but hedoes not want to have his owncap taken off. This causescompetitors to maintain distanceand avoid a grappling situation.The competitor is forced to trytechniques the moment hetouches his opponent.

2. When the competitor tries toget the opponent’s cap, his

elbow naturally goes up higherthan shoulder level, his side isopen and his posture unstable.This position is similar to anoff-balanced posture. As aresult, techniques are easier toperform. Elbow techniques suchas Oshitaoshi, Hikitaoshi,Wakigatame are easier for theopponent to apply. Not onlyelbow techniques but also othertechniques, especially Gedan-ate, are easier to perform.

3. The competitor is allowed toattack even after his cap is takenoff until it is raised highoverhead. Therefore during thisprocess there is some possibilitythat techniques are tried andcompleted. It is expected toshow the theory “Let youropponent cut your skin, then youcut his flesh. Let your opponentcut your flesh, then you cut hisbone.”

The technique performer alsohas a chance to make use of hisopponent’s loss of balance.

On a recent visit with his Sugamo high school students to St Paul’s School, Hammersmith and Shaun Hoddy’sEssex Aikido Dojo Shoshinkan, Itsuo Haba 7 Dan JAA introduced a new method for teaching Toshu Randorito young aikidoka. Here in his own words he describes his methodology. Video sequences are available onYouTube. Look for ‘Sugamo Toshu Randori (Essex Aikido Dojo)’. I believe this article may be of interest tocoaches of juniors and youth. Editor

As one player strugglesfor a technique the otherattempts to lift his cap for‘Men-dasshu-ari’.

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By breaking the opponent’sbalance and making a part of hisbody touch the mat, ormaintaining an off-balancesituation.When the performing competitorfalls down, the maximumdecision is “wazaari.”

Yuko: 1 pointBy breaking the opponent’sbalance.

  *Breaking  one’s  balancemeans breaking his posture withhis foot off the mats.

Men-dasshu-ari: 1 pointBy taking off the opponent’s capor “Men” and raising it upoverhead.

Foul points: Chui: 1 pointFoul points are given to theopposite competitor.

Detailed regulations● ”Men-dasshu- ari” is called

when a competitor takes offhis opponent’s cap andraises it high overhead.

● Even after the cap is takenoff, the competitor can go onattacking until a sequence ofoffence and defence stopsand the referee calls “Mate”.

● In the case of having “Men-dasshu” and a toshutechnique, the toshutechnique has priority over“Men-dasshu”.

● When more than onetechnique is used, the moreeffective technique haspriority over less effectiveone. When the techniquesare equal, the earliertechnique has priority.

● When both competitorsperform “Men-dasshu-ari”,the earlier technique haspriority.

● The competitor who dropshis cap to the ground losesthe right to attack and trytechniques until the refereecalls “Mate”.

Competition

Each competitor wears a capwhich his opponent mustremove and in the process, theytry to perform aikido techniques.The winner is declared byscoring the most pointsaccording to the number ofeffective techniques.

Duration: 2 minutes

Ippon: 4 pointsBy throwing the opponent downor controlling him with a stableposture.

*”Throwing down” means thebuttocks, or more than onepart of the body touchingthe tatami mats: a right handand a left hand, a hand anda knee, a hand and an elbow.

Wazaari: 2 points

Outline of Sugamo Aikido Toshu Randori

‘Men-dasshu-ari’ - player gains a point when he lifts his opponent’s cap aloft.

In the case of having “Men-dasshu” anda toshu technique, the toshu techniquehas priority over “Men-dasshu”.

by Itsuo Haba

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Juniors& Youth

Changes that have recentlybeen made to the BAA juniorgrading syllabus.

The recent changes to thegrading syllabus have created ajunior and a youth gradingsyllabus to be used for allmembers under the age of 16.Each of the syllabuses can alsobe found via the BAA websitewww.aikido-baa.org.uk. Alsoattached are guidance andregulatory notes for theimplementation of each syllabus.

Though these changes are to beimplemented and used witheffect from 1st January 1st 2013,although some clubs havealready trialled the system andare working within the newformats. It is recognised theremay be some overlap for juniorsbelow the age of 10 whocurrently hold a coloured belt.For these juniors it acceptablethey hold their current grade andthough below the age of 10continue to grade under the new‘Youth syllabus’ hence allowingthem to continue holding acoloured belt. It should be notedthis syllabus is considerablyharder than the current BAAsyllabus so if club coach deemsit appropriate to grade themunder the new ‘Junior Syllabus’reinstating a white belt this isacceptable.

From 1st January 2013 any juniorwho is white belt below the age

of 10, should remain as such andshould not grade to a colouredbelt until reaching the age of 10and hence grading under the‘Youth Syllabus’. As of May 1st

2015 no junior below the age of10 should hold any graderequiring them to wear any beltother than red or white.

Junior Syllabus outlined inbrief· The Junior Syllabus should

be used to grade membersbelow the age of 10.

· Until a junior is graded theyare to wear a red belt. Onceany junior has graded for thefirst time they should wear awhite belt until grading at 10years of age under the ‘YouthSyllabus’.

· A junior should wear thecorrect number and colour ofMons on their white belt.Once a junior progresses toa new colour of Mons the oldcoloured Mons should beremoved and replaced withthe new colour.

· The maximum Mons a juniorcan hold is 3 blue Mons.

Youth Syllabus outlined inbrief· Any Youth syllabus should

be used to grade allmembers from their 10birthday and below 16 yearsof age.

· Once a junior reaches theage of 16 they should grade

under the senior Kyu gradesyllabus.

· Until their first gradingjuniors should wear red belt.From their first grading theminimum grade a juniorshould hold is white belt. Nowhite tags are awarded tored belts.

· The maximum grade a juniorcan be awarded on their firstgrading under the YouthSyllabus is Orange belt,regardless of age orprevious grade.

· The maximum grade a juniorcan obtain under the Youthsyllabus is brown belt, noblack Mons are awardedunder the Youth syllabus.

New BAAJunior SyllabusLee MazacsBAA Youth Development Officer

Don’t forget animportant date foryour diary!

BAA Junior NationalChampionships

Saturday, 29 Jun 2013,Richard Dunn SportsCentre

Rooley Ave, Bradford, WestYorkshire BD6 1EZ

01274 307822

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In brief information about thesystem

The BAA Aikido Youth AwardSystem is now operational. Thissystem is designed to give juniorand youth members of theassociation a wider variety ofawards and achievements.The system has five initialawards but will gradually rise toa range of 30 awards juniors canobtain. The system is designedto award juniors on a range ofskills and values and does notreward juniors on technicalability alone. The scheme willpromote values such ascommitment, loyalty, leadership,sportsmanship and effort withthe goal of producing well-rounded Aikidoka.

1. The bronze award for coursesapplies to young people whoattend official BAA recognisedcourses. These should beregistered in the grading book, aphotocopy of which will berequired with the application.

2. Sportsperson award isachieved by attending andparticipating in four BAArecognised competitions, again

the grading book record will beused as evidence.

3. Recruitment badge is attainedwhen an individual recruits fivenew BAA members, the namesof the new members will belogged and have to appear onthe central database.

4. The bronze award formembership will be available toclaim when a young person hassuccessfully recorded two yearsBAA membership. Late renewalwill disqualify continuousmembership.

5. Team Captains award, oneteam captain can be designatedper registered club for 2013.This person can then claim thecaptain’s badge for the year.

Full details of available awardscan be found on the BAAwebsite and are all-available todownload to display within clubs.

How to apply for an award

To apply for an award a juniormust first meet the relevantrequirements for the award theyaim to achieve. These criteria

are only valid post 1st January2013. Prior accreditation is notpermissible. Once a junior meetsthe requirements of an award itis their club coachesresponsibility to apply for thisaward. They can do this by fillingin the required application formand returning to: -

Lee Mazacs (Youth Development Officer)

77 Halifax Rd,Odsal,Bradford,West Yorkshire,BD6 1JQleemazacs@hotmail.co.uk

Each award is accompanied bya badge which juniors can applyto their Dogi. To obtain a badgea fee of £1 per badge should besupplied with the applicationform. Cheques should be madepayable to British AikidoAssociation.

Club coaches can apply formultiple candidate awards at anygiven time. The badges shouldbe placed and displayed on thebottom of the Dogi jacket.

Juniors& Youth

Aikido YouthAward System :AiKIDoLee MazacsBAA Youth Development Officer

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The  Rev Canon Alan TaylorLord Mayor of Leeds invited theteam to the Civic Hall in Leedsfor buffet and a guided tour. Thiswas a great opportunity tohighlight the hard work of theteam and the managers DanielleJones and Mick Pratt.

This is the third time that theBritish Aikido Association hasbeen Team World Championswith, since 1989, a total of 74Gold, Silver and Bronze medal-winning teams. The current teamis looking forward to defendingtheir title in Kawasaki City, Tokyoin September 2013. by Bob Jones

The team received a civicreception for its exceptionalendeavours at the WorldChampionship in 2011.

Bob Jones,Chairman ofthe BAA withthe Lord Mayorof Leeds RevCanon AlanTaylor

British National Team awarded tophonour from the Lord Mayor of Leeds

JAA News

The JAA on the 1st Aprilannounced a revised list of itsexecutive board members andofficials. For older BAA membersit is welcome to see the re-involvement of familiar facesfrom the past.

In particular Kogure Sensei andEhara Sensei spent significantperiods of time in the UK andhelped the BAA establish itselfin its formative days. Kogure andEhara contributed to thedevelopment of randori and shiaiwithin the BAA.

Kogure Sensei also had a partto play in the establishment ofTomiki Aikido in the USA. As afluent English speaker, KogureSensei has a culturalunderstanding of the UK and theUSA gained through his longterm residencies in bothcountries and hopefully will helpto facilitate frank communicationbetween the BAA and the JAA.

Kogure Sensei was a greatfriend of the late Jim Elkin, amuch respected formerChairman of the BAA. Both JimElkin and Hiroaki Kogureappeared in the BBC’s ‘Way ofthe Warrior’ Series when itfeatured Aikido and Kendo as

‘Sporting Ways’. Hideo Ohba,Tomiki’s successor and lifelongcollaborator also appeared inthat episode. For those who areinterested (and you should be)it can be found on YouTube inits entirety.

by Paul Wildish

Teruo Fujiwara explains the old Tomiki Aikido system at Waseda University. FumiakiShishida and Shogo Yamaguchi are taking part in the seminar. (Picture thanks to Study GroupTomiki Aikido)

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We note also that FumiakiShishida has particularlydesignated his role as SenzokuShihan and in English as‘Scientific Researcher’. Thiswould seem to confirm anongoing re-examination ofTomiki Aikido’s past teachingmethodologies and technicaltheory, a reaching back to moveforward. The BAA hopes, havingpreserved much of OhbaShihan’s teachings through ourconsistent practice of the Koryuno Kata, that we can collaboratefruitfully with Shishida Shihanand the JAA in this development.

Below we give a full list of theJAA Board and their areas ofresponsibility. BAA members willalso note the roles of TadayukiSato Sensei and Yoshiomi InoueSensei, both increasinglyfamiliar faces to BAA membersover the last few years.

JAA News continued

Advisor: Hiroaki KogureChairperson: Masako Tomiki(Ms)Vice- Chairperson: KenshiUno

Auditors: Seijun Fujita/ToshioKawai

Director of Board: MasakoTomiki (Ms.)Vice- Director: Tetsu EharaSenzoku Shihan: FumiakiShishida (ScientificResearcher)

Board Members: KazuoIshihara, Yoshiomi Inoue,Mitsuo Osugi, Yuichi Kozaka,Kazuo Kotari, Taku Kobayashi,Tadayuki Sato, YoshioTakemoto, Koki Tomioka,Takashi Mihara, MitsueYamagata (Ms)

Educational Division:Tadayuki Sato (Head ofEducational Division)Instructors:Yoshiomi Inoue (HeadReferee)

Taku Kobayashi (HeadInstructor)Junji Konaka, NorihiroShimada

International Division: TetsuEhara (Head of InternationalDivision)

Steering Committee: ShogoYamaguchi (Head of SteeringCommittee)

Committee for 2013International AikidoFestival/Tournament inKawasaki:Yuichi Kozaka (Director)Satoshi Kawai (DeputyDirector)

Administrative Division:Akira Nakayama(Administrative Director)

Accountant:Yasuko Fujita (ShinsohPartners Tax Corporation)

Dojo by the SeaEaster School 2013

This Easter saw Thanet Judoand Aikido Club, the ‘Dojo by theSea’, hosting another great threedays of aikido training. Realisedthrough the initiative of DickTodd the club brought togetherEddy Wolput 7 Dan, Paul

Wildish 6 Dan, HarveyGoodman 6 Dan, AdrianTyndale 5 Dan and Gitte Wolputto teach throughout the longweekend.

Adrian Tyndale kicked off theschool with a session on theKoryu Dai Yon and its difficultand subtle techniques ofdisturbing balance as well asexamining basic movements.

Harvey Goodman taught theweapons sections of the KoryuDai San (Goshin no Kata).Always welcome as this is neverpractised as much as it requiresto master the techniques.

Paul Wildish taught a sessionthat explored the relationshipbetween maai and timing in kataand randori. Using acombination of kata techniques,Shodokan drills in ‘game’formats and structured randoripractice.

Eddy Wolput, a researcher ofolder training methodsintroduced 8 sotai dosa,exercises practised in the fifties,and the influence of this trainingmethod on koryu no kata.

Gitte Wolput taught a session onthe practical use of the conceptof ‘feeling’ in randori.

List of Executive Members/Board Membersof (NPO) Japan Aikido Association 1st April

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Are you interested in combininga few days of competition aikido,seminars and drinking Belgianbeer, or eating chocolate nextSpring? Then make plans toattend the next European TomikiAikido Championships.

Eddy Wolput will be hosting the2014 ETAN Championships inAntwerp next Spring. No datesare yet available but look out on

ETAN Championships 2014

Antwerp one of Europe’s finest cities

the BAA website or Facebookpages for announcements.

This will be the fourthsuccessive adult championship.The first two competitions wereheld in Budejovice (Budweis) inthe Czech Republic, followed inby Moscow in 2012.

Last year also saw theinauguration of the first ETANJunior Championship, held in

Switzerland and reported onpages 5-6 in this issue.

Antwerp is an exciting andinteresting city, with plenty of siteseeing opportunities, goodrestaurants and clubs. Thatis…if you ever get out of the dojoto see them! So make a spacein next years diary now.

Study Group Tomiki Aikido

If you are interested in researchinto the history and technicaldevelopment of Tomiki Aikido,then do not fail to look out for theStudy Group Tomiki Aikido onFacebook. Set up and run byEddy Wolput it is a mine ofinformation about TomikiAikido’s past and contemporarydevelopments.

Eddy Wolput, 7 Dan JAA

Keep up to date with:BAA Courses & Club Events

May 12 - BAA Annual GeneralMeeting Sunday, 12 May 20131.00 p.m.Solihull Moors AFC,Damson Parkway, Off CoventryRoad,(A45), Solihull, WestMidlands, B912PP

May 19 BAA National SquadTraining

May 25-27 BAA SpringSchool, Winchester, LesleyHepden 7 Dan, Bob Jones 7Dan, Paul Wildish 6 Dan,Nicole Anson 3 Dan, DanielleJones 3 Dan.

Jun 08 Kata to Randori - PaulWildish 6 Dan,13:00-18:00,Zion Place, Margate.

Jun 09 BAA National SquadTraining

Jun 23 Senior ClubChampionships

Jun 29 Junior NationalChampionships, Bradford

Jul 06 Adrian Tyndale 5 Dan13:00-18:00, Zion Place,Margate.

Jul 14 BAA National SquadTraining

Jul 26-28 BAA SummerSchool North, Leeds

Aug 18 BAA National SquadTraining

Aug 24-25 BAA SummerSchool ‘South of the River’,Folkestone

Sep 19-23 10th InternationalAikido Tournament,Kawasaki, Japan

Oct 06 BAA ExecutiveCommittee Meeting

Oct 26, Koryu Dai Go - ShaunHoddy 6 Dan, 13:00-18:00,Zion Place, Margate.

Nov 9-10 BAA AutumnSchool, Herne Bay Judo &Martial Arts Centre, StationApproach, The Circus, HerneBay, CT6 5QJ. Dojo next torailway station.

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Contact: shizentai@aikido-baa.org.uk

We want your news, reports and articles. Please send contributions to the emailaddress below. Thanks - the Editor.

Rising Dawn Seminar DublinThis April Tallaght Tomiki Aikido Ryu, Dublin, hosted a seminar from the 20th to the 21st of Aprilat the Belgard Heights Community Centre with Bob Jones 7 Dan, Shaun Hoddy 6 Dan & Mick Pratt4 Dan. Here we show you some of the action from the event.