AUGUST 2008

Geoff Collins’ 2nd Dan Grading, 2nd August, 2008

Greetings to all Kansuiryu students and anyone else who takes the time to keep themselves abreast of what’s going on with our style of karate. For those looking in from Japan (or anywhere else) we are now in the middle of what passes for winter in North Queensland.  It makes for great training conditions; sunny days and nice cool weather.

With Moriyama-sensei returning from his most recent visit to Japan those students who took part in our most recent grading should by now have received their belts and certificates. In terms of outright numbers this was a more quiet grading than the last two or so, but only because the newer students who progressed at those times were sitting this one out. The flip side of that dynamic was the number of senior and intermediate students progressing. Importantly, this means that our satellite dojos in Kuranda and Koah are developing a solid core of resident grades, a good indicator of the overall state of Kansuiryu Karate in our part of the world.

We have just said our farewells to our three most recent visitors. As Senior Instructor in Japan, Yoshimura-sensei is well known to students who have been to Japan under the Kansuiryu Scholarship Program and to others from his past visits to Australia. On this occasion he was accompanied by Kurokawa-sensei from Tsu city, and Tonomoto-senpai who has twice won the lightweight division of the Kansuiryu Championships. Kurokawa-sensei last visited Australia ten years ago and we can hope he was gratified by the growth of Kansuiryu Karate here since that time. Tonomoto-senpai’s presence built on a recent tradition of bringing Japanese Senpai to Australia to meet and train with Australian Senpai and students.

During their time in North Queensland Yoshimura-sensei and Kurokawa-sensei assisted Moriyama-sensei in overseeing the Nidan (second degree) black belt grading of Geoff Collins. The grading consisted of fitness drills, tamashiwara (breaking demonstrations) kata, weapons kata, pre-arranged sparring and finally twenty rounds of full-contact fighting.

As it is a very sore Geoff Collins who is sitting in front of the computer at this moment writing this newsletter, now might be a good moment to jump into first person and extend my thanks to all those involved, principally Moriyama-sensei, Yoshimura-sensei, Kurokawa-sensei and Tonomoto-senpai, and also all those senior grades who participated, particularly Shihandai Mal Floyd for his help with kata training and Shane Pedler who assisted with the fighting kata and kime – and contributed my black eye.

Difficult as it may be for those who were lucky enough to attend last year; we are now only a couple of months out from the World Kansuiryu Full-Contact Championships in Japan. As always a yet to be announced contingent of Australian students will travel with Moriyama-sensei to Japan for this tournament as beneficiaries of the Kansuiryu Karate Scholarship Program. This is a terrific opportunity for those students who have demonstrated commitment and perseverance at training, to experience karate where it originated. We all look forward to some serious backslapping when this year’s names are announced and some hardcore war stories when you return.

So, plenty that’s happened and plenty to come. Watch this space and see you at the dojo.

APRIL 2008

The writer of this newsletter has just returned from a Thursday night training session in Cairns.

Numbers were pretty much average for this time of year - with  school holidays, camping trips and all – about twenty five or so in total. The most noticeable thing was that nine of those present were 1^st Dan black belts. It hasn’t quite got to the point where the Dan grades outnumber the kyu grades, but it’s getting close. This indicates two things. 

Firstly, as each black belt has been training at the dojo for around 4 years prior to their grading, this shows great commitment and dedication to Kansuiryu Karate.

Secondly, it shows that lots of people go camping during the school holidays – no big surprise there.

The guys with the nice new belts are Kazuma Ando, Shaun Fitzgerald and Shane Pedder.  On the 29^th of March, Kazuma, Shaun and Shane successfully graded for shodan (1^st Dan black belt) before Moriyama Sensei, president of World Kansuiryu Karate Federation, and Yoshimura Sensei, senior instructor from Japan.

This was a big day for all three who graded. A shodan grading is an arduous affair, with a strenuous minimum fitness component, a full training session, full contact sparring plus all the technical requirements of kata, board-breaking and basics. It is also an event for the whole dojo where everyone can get involved and cheer on those who have done the hard yards and reached this goal.

Well done to everyone, primarily the three participants of course, but also all those who stayed to offer encouragement, put themselves on the line for the sparring and generally shared the whole experience.

It’s important to remember that the number of shodan we see these days at the back of the dojo during training is a sum total of thousands of collective hours of effort, not only from those wearing the black belts but also those who volunteered their time and hard earned knowledge in helping them to get to where they are today. Of course, at the top of that pyramid is Moriyama Sensei. Bowing to Sensei, Shihandai and shodan and above is, in part, an acknowledgement by the various grades of the assistance they have been given to this point, and would hope to receive in the future.

Along with the belt, new shodan also receive a bo, or staff. In Kansuiryu, weapons training is the preserve of the Dan grades. Kata training also takes on further importance. In Japanese, Dan means simply ‘step’ and first Dan translates exactly. . 

And waiting in the wings are all those 1^st kyu brown belts. You know who you are. Watch this space…

Of course, this was not the only grading to date this year. Plenty of our kyu grades fronted up the preceding month to be put through their paces. By now everyone should have received their certificates and new belts, and if you don’t have them it means you’ve been skipping training. Again, well done to all who participated, both those grading and those who assisted.

Moving away from belts and gradings for the moment, as always it has been a pleasure to have Yoshimura Sensei and his family visiting (and training) with us again. During their time with us last month Yoshimura Sensei and his family took a tour of the Atherton Tablelands where the kids went for a swim in Lake Eacham, which would have to have been a pretty out-there experience for a couple of urban Japanese children, and everyone visited a Tablelands dairy factory where they all learned that Australian cheese tastes really good and Australian cows stink big time. We hope to look forward to many visits in the future. We trust they do too.

All of which should do for now. The cooler weather is upon us and there are no more excuses.  See you all at the dojo.      

FEBRUARY 2008

Belated New Year’s Greetings to everyone – our monthly newsletters are in danger of becoming an annual event. Good to see that all the usual suspects have dragged themselves back to the dojo after the sins and excesses of the festive season. There were a few people looking a bit green about the gills with the commencement of training but hopefully the Christmas inches are shrinking away by now. A smattering of new faces to be seen too, which is always a good sign this early in the year. Existing students please make the effort to introduce yourself – it can be intimidating enough entering a dojo for the first time without being totally ignored into the bargain.

2008 should be a busy year for Kansuiryu here in North Queensland. For starters the signs are that there should be a record number of students grading for shodan (1^st dan black belt) and above. A black belt grading is always a milestone, not only for the student but for the dojo as a whole. The fact that we have such a solid core of students gearing up for the test speaks of the work ethic we’ve seen at the dojo over the last few years. For those students in the lower or intermediate levels dan grades can seem a long way off, but the fact is that there isn’t a black belt in the world who didn’t step through the dojo door for the first time once. Talent is all very well but it’s not much compared to perseverance, and while a black belt should be everyone’s goal there’s always the belt beyond the one you have now to think about first, and then the one beyond that…

Once again this year, Moriyama Sensei’s duties as president of Kansuiryu Karate International will see him briefly out of the country a number of times. For anyone who sees these periods as opportunity to sit at home and down a few coldies, don’t kid yourselves. Sensei has a well developed system of informants and the day of reckoning will come. You have been warned. Undoubtedly there will also be a number of Sensei visiting over the coming months. At these times everyone is expected to attend training if at all possible – if they can make it from Japan, you can make it from across town.

Up the range in Kuranda we’re examining our options regarding training venues. At the moment Kuranda lacks a gym or large public hall or other really suitable area for activities such as karate. Currently the local council are asking for submissions from the community as to the future use of the buildings vacated when the primary school moved out a couple of years back. Possibly one of these buildings may become available in the future. It’s early days yet but there’s a public meeting coming up this month so we’ll be keeping an eye on things.

There is going to be a little bit of a push this year to have students start familiarising themselves with Japanese terminology around the dojo. If anyone wants to get a head start on this refer to the glossary on the website. Initially you would probably be best served by sticking to the names of the various blocks, kicks and strikes. While you’re at it you might like to brush up on dojo etiquette. A lot of people are a bit nonplussed by all the bowing that goes on in a dojo but at the end of the day Kansuiryu is a traditional style of karate and has its roots in tradition. Basically, if it’s wearing a black belt, bow. It’s not an ego stroke; all the shodan and above spend a lot of time helping out with instruction of the lower grades and a quick gesture of respect is all that’s needed by way of recognition.

That’s it for the time being. See you all at training!

SEPTEMBER 2007

Attendance at Gradings conducted 
1st September, 2007
- Cairns Dojo

Apologies for being a little remiss with the website newsletter of late so we’ll try and play a little catch-up.

On the 10^th of March. Keisuke Kawamata undertook his shodan (1^st Dan Black Belt) grading at the Cairns Dojo. Keisuke’s grading coincided with normal Saturday training. Congratulations to Keisuke on achieving this.

On the following Saturday, the 17^th, a general grading was held. Many students from the Kuranda and Koah Dojos made the trip down to Cairns for the first time and there were plenty of new faces floating around.

The usual general gradings were held throughout the year as well as selections for the 2007 World Kansuiryu Karate Championships in Japan, to be held in October.

On the subject of the championships, anyone who has not done so already should take the time to read the section on this website concerning the Kansuiryu Scholarship Program. This unique program enables Australian students to visit Japan for training and competition – not only the young and ridiculously talented, but all who put in the time and effort. The opportunity is there for anyone who earns it. Keep it in mind on those training days when the muscles are a bit stiff and there’s something good on the telly. It’s your call.

Back to the reasonably current, Brenda Ryle and Taylor Tarawhiti Snr underwent their shodan gradings on September 1st, at which time Senpai Mal Floyd graded for sandan (3^rd Dan Black Belt).

Again, congratulations to Brenda and Taylor on grading shodan, and for Mal Floyd and Kansuiryu Karate, it is the first time a non-Japanese has graded 3^rd Dan, so this was a special event. Sensei Yukinori Moriyama, Yoshimura Sensei and Miyazono Sensei were in attendance for the evaluation.

It’s been a long time (if ever) that Kansuiryu Australia has held more than a single black belt grading in a year, although looking at the ranks of brown belts currently at training we may not be waiting too long to see it happen again. All of which is a pleasing reminder of the strength of our style here in North Queensland. 

Moriyama Sensei’s obligations in Japan will have him leaving us a number of times later in the year but fortunately there are plenty of senior grades to conduct training and take note of anyone who’s suddenly gone on holiday.

For those working their way through their kata, try and get a copy of “The Essence of Okinawan Karate-do” by Shoshin Nagamine.  Nagamine Sensei (now deceased) was the founder of Matsubayashi Karate and the teacher of Mizutani Sensei, in turn the founder of Kansuiryu Karate. As such his book remains the standard reference for all our kata as well as providing an intriguing insight into the development of the branch of karate which ultimately led to our style.

And finally a brief non-denominational prayer. God, send us cool weather on training days. Amen

Keisuke Kawamata

Brenda Ryle

Taylor Tarawhiti Snr

 Mal Floyd - 3rd Dan

Looking to the near future, the recipients of the Kansuiryu Scholarship Program for 2006 have been named. Those chosen under the program will visit Japan for two weeks of training and participation in the World Kansuiryu Karate Tournament. The recipients are:

Kazuma Ando, for Black belt heavyweight division

                                                        Shane Pedler, Coloured belt heavyweight    

Shaun Fitzgerald, Coloured belt heavyweight 

                                                                   Johnathon Grasso, Junior schoolboys.

Kazuma will be defending his championship from last year. Shane, Shaun and Jonathon will be visiting for the first time. Have a blast, guys; it really is the experience of a lifetime.

Also competing in the tournament, for the third time, is Kristie Grasso, in the Woman’s Black Belt competition. Kristie is 2nd Dan Black Belt in another full contact style and also trains with Kansuiryu Karate at the Cairns Dojo, along with her son, Johnathon. Kristie is determined to do well for herself and Australia.

February 2006

Well, the excesses of Christmas and New Year are a fading memory and all those who so shamefully overindulged should be well and truly toned up again by now. And as well as all the old hands reappearing at training there has been a pleasing influx of new faces, to the point where the Cairns Dojo has been full to bursting on occasions. Attendance at Kuranda and Koah have also been up, as evidenced by the turnout at this month’s gradings. Perhaps more than at any time in the past few years we have not only a groundswell of more recent students continuing their progression in karate but a solid core of intermediate and senior grades moving towards the milestone of a shodan grading. It all bodes well for the continuing health of Kansuiryu in Australia.

For the benefit of anyone who has been living under a rock for the last few months, the big development during last year’s visit to Japan was the elevation of Moriyama Sensei to Chairman of the World Kansuiryu Karate Federation and his promotion to 7^th Dan.

Sensei’s new responsibilities will require his presence in Japan on occasions throughout the year but he will of course continue to instruct in Cairns, Kuranda and Koah and training will continue during his brief absences. We shall also continue to receive visits from Senior Japanese Sensei, so on the whole, business as usual.

All those who traveled to Japan under the scholarship program and competed in the 2005 Kansuiryu Championships did us proud. Some bouts were won and some lost but on balance more were won than lost. And of course Kazuma-san fought his way all the way through to the final of his class which he won on a knockout, thereby adding another shiny trophy to the ever growing collection at the Cairns Dojo. Irrespective of success in the tournament everybody came back with the memories of a unique experience and a renewed commitment to their training.

The February gradings have passed with a bumper turnout of students being put through their paces under Sensei’s watchful eye. Well done both to those who participated and everyone else who turned up to assist. Judging by some of the death or glory performances in the kumite we have a pretty tough core of fighters developing. Kata was also very much on the curriculum and for anybody interested in picking up a reference book for Kansuiryu Kata they are in fact identical to the kata described in ‘The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do’ by Shoshen Nagamine who taught Kansuiryu co-founder Yukio Mizutani-sensei.

 See Mal if you’d like to take a look at a copy.

Finally, a qualified farewell to Kevin Marsden, whose work commitments have required him to move on. Kev is one of Moriyama Sensei’s original students, black belt and all round good bloke and we’ll all be sorry to see him go. That said, the Marsden family are moving to Mackay, not Mars, so hopefully we haven’t quite seen the last of them yet.

And before we sign off a few words to ponder from renowned karate master Masutatsu Oyama when questioned by an American journalist as to how he was able to perform the amazing feats of strength he had demonstrated in that country; “There is only one secret – sweat!” 

OCTOBER, 2005

Well, hard as it may seem to believe we’re approaching the last quarter of the year and things see to be as busy as usual on the karate front without much sign of a let up before everyone starts thinking about the Christmas break. In fact, 2005 is something of a seminal year both for individuals within the style and for Kansuiryu Karate as a whole.

 The big news for this year, and one of the biggest events ever for our style, is a changing of the guard for Kansuiryu Karate with Seko-sensei stepping down from President of World Kansuiryu Karate Federation and the promotion of Sensei Yukinori Moriyama, current head of Kansuiryu Australia, to President of our style.

 Seko-sensei assumed the presidency of Kansuiryu Karate after the death of Sensei Yukio Mizutani, co-founder of our style. Over the years Seko-sensei has overseen the growth of Kansuiryu to include thousands of students in Japan and the establishment of the style in Australia under the instruction of his longtime student, Moriyama-sensei. Australian students who have met Seko-sensei in Australia will be in no doubt as to his passion for karate and the force of his personality. The promotion of  Moriyama-sensei to President of World Kansuiryu Karate Federation will represent the third generation of leadership for our style.

It is worth considering that these events usher in a unique set of circumstances. Kansuiryu is a Japanese style of karate and will continue to be overseen by a Japanese Sensei, but one who now resides in Australia. While Moriyama-sensei’s new duties will require him to visit Japan more often, he will continue his responsibility for the development of Kansuiryu Karate in Australia. The growth of Kansuiryu Karate in Japan will also be overseen by all the senior Sensei who teach there.

In October of this year Australian Kansuiryu students once more greeted Seko-sensei during his annual visit to check on things down here in our corner of the world. This year Seko-sensei was accompanied by Kitamura-sensei, 8^th Dan and head of Kansuiryu’s original dojo in Nagoya, and Aoki-senpai, 2^nd Dan and winner of the middleweight division of last year’s World Kansuiryu Karate Championships.

During their visit Seko-sensei and Kitamura-sensei oversaw the Shodan (1^st Dan Black Belt) gradings of Louis Bonome and Geoff Collins, the sixth and seventh shodan to be graded in Australia. While continuing to attend the Cairns Dojo where they began training under Moriyama Sensei, both Louis and Geoff coincidentally now live in Kuranda and also train at the CWA Hall, Kuranda and Koah Hall, so their elevation to shodan level further strengthens the two newest Kansuiryu Dojos. All of this year’s gradings, whether for yellow belt or 2^nd Dan, represent not only an accomplishment for the individual but a step for Kansuiryu Karate as a whole.

On the note of individual accomplishments, the recipients of this year’s scholarships to visit Japan for two weeks of training and competition have been named.

They are:

Brad Milligan, 2^nd kyu.  Coloured belt heavyweight division.

Taylor Tarawhiti,  4^th kyu. Senior division.

Taylor Tarawhiti jnr, 3^rd kyu. Senior schoolboys division.

Kazuma Ando, 5^th kyu. Coloured belt heavyweight division.

Brenda Ryle, 2^nd kyu. Women’s open division

Congratulations to all. Being selected to visit Japan is recognition of your diligence in training, commitment to the furthering of Kansuiryu Karate and an experience you will remember for the rest of your lives. Make sure you bring back lots of stories and hopefully some silverware to add to the collection at the Cairns Dojo.

And finally, the last gradings of the year will take place on October 1^st, with another bumper crop of students fronting up to be put through their paces. Good luck to everyone involved and well done on your efforts this year.

July 2005

Hard as it may seem to believe the year is half gone. It’s been a busy few months for Kansuiryu Karate in Australia with the visit of Miwa-sensei from Japan, another grading, and the scholarships for the 2005 World Kansuiryu Karate Championships being considered. Along the way there has been all the usual sweat, effort and general hard work.

First of all, from everyone in Australia a big thanks to Miwa-sensei for taking the time  to train and teach at the Cairns dojo. For those of us who have attended the World Kansuiryu Karate Championships and come to know Miwa-sensei in Japan, it was great to see her in Australia. Miwa-sensei is a third dan black belt in Kansuiryu Karate and many of us benefited from her expertise in kata.

Attendance at the Cairns, Kuranda and Koah dojos has continued to grow. A healthy dojo needs both older hands and new faces to prosper and it’s good to see the Tableland dojos in particular really settling down and growing roots. This ongoing development has been most clearly seen in the turnout for the mid-year gradings. More than sixty adults and children from all three dojos underwent examination by Moriyama-sensei, easily the greatest number grading to date. Gradings are always a little daunting, particularly for the significant number of new students on this occasion, and it is a credit to everybody that the day went so smoothly. Almost everybody should have received their new belts by now and Certificates of Rank will be issued in due time after processing by Kansuiryu Karate in Japan. Well done to everyone who participated, including all the senior grades who assisted in organising the day and took knocks in the sparring.

Looking to the near future, the next big event on the Kansuiryu Calender is the staging of the 2005 World Kansuiryu Karate Championships in Japan. This major full contact tournament attracts over eight hundred competitors and thousands of spectators annually and each year Kansuiryu Australia is represented by a sponsored contingent who are taken to the home country for a couple of weeks of training and competition. If you haven’t already done so, take the time to read about the sponsorship program and the World Kansuiryu Karate Championships on this site – it’s an achievable goal for anyone who puts in the time and effort. Those students under consideration for this great experience have already been tapped on the shoulder and you can bet Moriyama-sensei will have a quiet eye on future prospects. There is only one secret – keep training!

Finally, some congratulations are in order. Rico-san has successfully graded for her Shodan (black belt) in Japan! Rico will be well known to many students in Cairns where she was living when she began her training in Kansuiryu under Moriyama-sensei. She has since returned to Japan, continued to train and recently reached this milestone. Rico continues to insist she is Japanese while at the same time stocking up on Vegemite during each visit to Australia (true story). Well done Rico, and we all look forward to seeing you with your black belt next time you are over.

April 2005

This is the first newsletter for this website, and a little overdue, so before we address how Kansuiryu Karate is going in 2005 it might be opportune to look back at how the preceding year wound up.

In September 2004, Kansuiryu Australia had what must be the smallest grading in its relatively brief history, but also one of the most significant.

Under the critical eyes of Moriyama Sensei, head of Kansuiryu Australia, Seko Sensei, President of Kansuiryu Karate International, and Shimada Sensei, a senior Japanese sensei, Mal Floyd graded successfully for his 2^nd Dan Black Belt, the first Australian to do so. Well-done Mal on what is a milestone not only for you, but Kansuiryu Karate in general.

Apart from overseeing Mal’s grading Seko Sensei and Shimada Sensei 5^th Dan, also attended a combined training session for the Kuranda and Koah dojos where they met more than forty senior and junior students.

The annual visits of these senior Sensei from Japan is a confirmation of the importance placed upon the development of Kansuiryu Karate in Australia.

In October 2004 more than eight hundred competitors converged for the 13th Kansuiryu Open Full-Contact Championships in Mie, Japan. Each year scholarships are awarded to Australian fighters to attend this tournament and experience the culture of Japan for around 12 days. In 2004, work and family commitments precluded a number of senior grades taking advantage of this program and Kansuiryu was represented solely by Geoff Collins in the heavyweight coloured belt division. Geoff fought through to the quarterfinals where he tied with a local fighter after two extensions. The bout was eventually decided in favour of the other fighter due to his marginally lighter body weight but Geoff took away the experience of competing and training in Japan for the second time thanks to the generosity of Kansuiryu Karate and our sponsors in Japan. Anyone interested in more information on the tournament and sponsorship program can follow the links.

For the first months of 2005, there are firstly congratulations to everyone who graded in February. This was one of the largest gradings thus far, reflecting the continuing strength of the dojos in Kuranda and Koah.

At the main dojo in Cairns, there is a leader board displaying the rank of all current members of Kansuiryu Australia. At the top of the board are the rarified black belt grades but at least as important are the lower and intermediate ranks jostling for position below. A teacher is not much use without a pupil and all those who graded should be proud of the belt they wear.

Coming up for Kansuiryu students in the not to distant future, another Japanese instructor will be visiting. And remember, it’s only six months until the next championships in Japan and there will be more than one student getting tapped on the shoulder this year – keep up the training and one day it will be you.