24th All Japan 8-dan Invitational Kendo Championship

Once again, the All Japan Kendo Federation (AJKF) kicks off the fiscal year with the 8-dan tournament in Nagoya. This year’s championship is the 24th edition, but if you include the 26 years of the Meiji-mura 8-dan championship that was held from 1977 to 2002, this year is the 50th event.

As usual, 32 8-dan sensei have been selected for their skill to compete in this tournament. These sensei must have held the 8-dan grade for at least five years and be under the age of 65. There is also a limit of five entries so unfortunately, Eiga Naoki-sensei will not be competing this year. He won four of his five entries. Still, there are plenty of great matches to look forward to. For the international kendo community, it is great that Roberto Kishikawa-sensei of Brazil is back in his second championship.

Of the 32 competitors, 16 are police officers and 11 are teachers and the remaining five being made up of a mix of civil servants, company workers and other positions. The average age is 58.4 years with the oldest being 64 and the youngest 55.

H8-dan Onda Koji-sensei—himself a former winner of this tournament, as well as an instructor at the Kendo World Keiko-kai in the pre-COVID days—is a member of the AJKF’s instruction committee. He made these comments about the competitors in the first-round matches:

With abundant spirit, Kuranari presses forward; Komeda creates striking opportunities with initiative—who will seize the moment?

Brimming with fighting spirit, Hamada can overwhelm opponent’s with his energy; Horie shifts between stillness and motion, probing for openings—victory will be decided by who can take the initiative.

Kadota’s techniques are sharp and precise; Imazato launches attacks from a solid, composed kamae. This will be a contest of spirit and skill.

Sato skilfully executes techniques from a posture uniting attack and readiness; Okamoto, whose kendo has been forged through relentless training, always commits fully. This will be an upright, head-on contest.

Among the competitors, Hirao stands out for his technical precision. Aiko employs a wide variety of agile techniques with softness. Whoever can subtly control the maai will decide the match.

Suemasu has great body control and can move skilfully; Tomohiro demonstrates sharp timing in an instant.

Adachi is keen-eyed and perceptive; Yamashita, bold and fearless with a calm kamae.

Kudo reads the moment well; Miyazaki grasps the essentials and does not wastefully strike. Timing and distance will be key in this bout.

Iwasa strikes with few wasted movements and full spirit; Tsutsumi commits fully from a solid kamae. This will be a keenly contested bout.

Kishikawa, presses forward with strong spirit; Ueda attacks boldly with a calm composure.

Nabeyama shows mature and varied techniques; Baba employs orthodox kendo—a battle of feints and realities.

Katsuno combines strength and softness; Iwakiri can discern the opponent’s movements. This confrontation will test their level.

Chikamoto delivers straight, powerful men strikes; Iguchi seeks the perfect striking opportunity. The first decisive strike will hold immense value.

Sugimoto, brimming with energy and a fully developed in mind, technique, and body; Ishida attacks without pause from a flexible stance—anticipation for a superb ippon.

Origuchi displays a vigorous and expansive style; Okumori attacks with reason.

Terachi launches extended men strikes from light footwork; Tamada excels in controlling distance. The match hinges on who dominates whom.

(Profiles of the competitors can be found below.)

It is sure to be an exciting day’s kendo. The Kendo World Team – actually, only Michael as Alex is busy jetting around the world to promote his Musashi translation – will be there again and will have some highlights uploaded to our YouTube channel in the days after the tournament.

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