By Baptiste Tavernier

The 18th All Japan Jukendo Championship was held on August 6th, 2010, at the Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo. This year, with the tournament being scheduled on Friday, the Budokan was nearly empty. Nevertheless, the 64 participants (6-dan and above) offered us very interesting and powerful performances in their shiai.

There were only two courts this year compared to the several courts of the past, so it was a little bit easier to follow the action. ...

By Kate Sylvester

The 2nd All Japan Inter-Prefectural Ladies Kendo Championship was held on Saturday the 17th of July at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo.

With 235 of the Japan’s best female kendoka representing 47 prefectures in 5 member teams, the competition promised to be a sensational event.
This competition has replaced the annual All Japan Inter-Prefectural housewives' Kendo Championship due to the growing skill level of women’s Kendo in Japan.

The 5 member teams were selected from each prefecture’s best senshu ranging from the top high school student as senpo to the most accomplished 6 or 7-dan as taisho. Each team was represented by a high level of skill and depth of ...

By Blake Bennett
Held in Osaka for the past three years, this year’s 58th All Japan University Student Men’s Kendo Championships was held in Tokyo’s Budokan on the 4th of July, 2010.

Beginning early Sunday morning, scores of the future of Japanese men’s kendo donned their best blues, and began to slug it out for the coveted title as Japan’s number 1.
Word around the stadium picked athletes from both Kokushikan University and Kanoya Physical Education University (Kanoya Taiiku Daigaku) as the horses to bet on – a wager any punter (Sumo wrestler or otherwise) would be a fool to pass up considering these universities results in the women's competition the previous day.
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By Kate Sylvester

The 44th All Japan University Women’s Individual Championships were held at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo on Saturday 3rd July.
88 of the best University kendoka from 44 Universities around Japan competed in the annual knockout tournament. ...

On Sunday the 20th of June, 2010, both the 41st Osaka New Student Mens Championships & the 1st Osaka New Student Womens Championships were held at Ohama Gymnasium, Osaka.

A shiai designed to show off the new talent in each university kendo club, the best of the 1st and 2nd year students gather each year to compete in either the individual or the team events.
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By Blake Bennett

10 courts running full time from 9:30am, hosting shiai for 219 male and female students ...