9th Shiramizu Taikai! - Take two...

I suppose it's now for the "Lawrence-take" on things.......

In the background you can see Takagi Sensei and Arakawa Sensei laughing at our demo...

The post prior pretty much sums up how the tournament went so I'll just throw in my two cents about what I saw and learned.

The one aspect about the tournament I particularly liked was that it almost felt like a showcase of everyone's abilities, as opposed to a competition of who was better. Obviously some of the older kids were really motivated to win (in a healthy way), and those who excelled should be acknowledged, but as Richard Sensei mentioned, everyone got a certificate for participating because that's equally important. And because the competition portion was only half the day, the later demo's meant that every single member got a chance to do more than just compete.

I can't recall a single kid being upset at a loss in a match because, soon after, they had another chance to show their wares in the demo with all their friends.

I also did like that, being a dojo tournament, the format was kumite for the finals (and semi-finals if there were lots of kids in one category), with kata for the matches prior. It really requires that those who want to do well make sure they're doing well in both areas.

But I do feel that grouping the kids by age only does make it difficult for the lower belts when they're pitched against black belts, but I'll be the first to concede that it was inevitable as doing it any other way would result in lots and lots of 3-person categories to run through. I will say, however, that there were some upsets in terms of lower belts winning over higher ranking belts, so it does offer a new twist to things. Regardless, the first point about the competitive spirit never overpowering the spirit of friendship still holds true.

With the tournament portion running extremely smoothly and without injury, we moved to the demos, which was the highlight for me.

Everything from individual kata demos to acrobatic "save the damsel in distress" skits to self defense demos to group kata demos, was just great fun. Every single person from the youngest to the oldest had a chance to be on the floor to take part, and everyone had a big smile on their face.

I'm also quite glad to say the demo I did with Richard Sensei went over quite well. To make a long story short, it starts like this.......

and ends like this......
..... 6 times. Even harder than being thrown around was keeping the grin off my face, as I was supposed to be angry......... oh well =)......

But such was the variety of the demos, the good mix of seriousness and fun, that really made the tournament fun no matter how one was involved.

Which I think brings me to my last point, that though this particular tournament had 450-odd participants, there's no doubt in my mind that something half, quarter, or even a fifth of the size wouldn't be just as fun. So long as the right atmosphere and dedication, from students and volunteering parents alike, is present, the rest of the aspects will follow.

All I can say is I'm very glad to be around for the 10th anniversary of the Shiramizu Taikai. Til then......

Richard here! Below are pictures of 'Lawrence The Intern' in action mixing it up!