Posts 2017


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Dec 19 2017 | Last training day of the year

Last keiko of the year at Shidokan, closing with a friendly shiai. Thank you 2017 for all the teachings, all the friendships and all the biru-geiko. Looking forward to another great year, much to learn still...

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!






Dec 09, 2017 | Another great year comes to an End

Shidokan ends the year 2017 on a bright note, with a high grading pass rate and great results at various competitions in both kendo and iaido. New recruits have also bolstered our ranks, and we look forward to seeing them improve in their practice. Our members have created a solid foundation from which we hope to see the club grow into next year. After a short hiatus to enjoy the holidays with friends and family, we will get back to work towards even greater results!



None of this would have been possible if not for the guidance and advice we have received from sensei(s), sempai(s), and friends. We would like to thank Santoso Sensei and Dean Jolly Sensei for their patience during every practice; Julio Kenji Toida Sensei and his family, Ariyama Sensei, and the rest of MKC for their hospitality; Goyo Ohmi Sensei and Stephen Cruise Sensei who visit Shidokan every year for a wonderful seminar; Lawrence Tsuji Sensei, whom we had the pleasure of meeting at JCCC; our friends from other dojos, near and far; and to everyone else who has participated in our growth as both practitioners and individuals. Thank you!






Dec 02 & 03, 2017 | CKF Iaido Grading at Etobicoke, ON

On December 2nd the Mu Mon Kai Iaido Club hosted the annual fall iaido grading, held at the Etobicoke Olympium. We had the privilege of attending a seminar taught by a wide array of notable iaidoka, including: Shozo Kato Sensei, Pam Parker Sensei, Goyo Ohmi Sensei, Stephen Cruise Sensei, and many more visiting from across Canada and the United States. Shidokan did very well in the grading, with all applicants passing their respective exams.



The next day the Mu Mon Kai Open Taikai took place. Shidokan carried the spirit from the previous day forward and performed very well. Carolina Merizalde obtained first place in the Mudansha division and Dean Jolly Sensei obtained second place in the 5-Dan division. Mariel Balzola also brought back the Haruna Spirit Award. Congratulations!

We would like to express our gratitude to Mu Mon Kai and all the other organizers at the Etobicoke Olympium for putting together these events. We look forward to facing the challenges that the new year will bring!






November 25 & 26 2017 | Shidokan at JCCC, ON

This year, four members from Shidokan participated in the JCCC tournament in Toronto, Ontario. We would like to congratulate Gabriel Schor, for obtaining the first place as Champion of the 2-Dan & 3-Dan division! While competition was fierce, everyone did well and showed great spirit throughout the taikai. Special thanks to Gaspar Closenet from McGill Kendo Club, for joining us in the afternoon for team division matches!

AT the following day, the annual JCCC kendo grading took place. There we met with our dear friend, Lawrence Tsuji Sensei, whom we would like to congratulate for obtaining the rank of 5-Dan. Shidokan also brought back three new 1-Dan, as well as a new 5-Dan from the event: congratulations to José Furtado Sensei!



We would like to thank Santoso Sensei for his constant advice, as well as the organizers of these annual events.





Nov 17 & 18, 2017 Eddy Devisse Sensei visits Shidokan

We had a great weekend with our good friends from MKC, and a special visit from Eddy Devisse Sensei who came all the way from Trinidad and Tobago! Thank you for sharing keiko and breakfast together with us. We would also like to congratulate Eddy Devisse Sensei on passing his Godan examination in Toronto this December. Hope to see you again soon!







October 25 & 27, 2017 | Toida Family in Montreal

On October 25th at Shidokan, and on October 27th at MKC, we had the privilege of practicing with Julio Kenji Toida Sensei and his parents: Nelson Kuniji Toida Sensei and Terezinha Satiko Toida, visiting all the way from São Paulo, Brazil. It was an excellent opportunity to learn not only from high-ranking kendoka, but also from close friends. Representatives from other dojos were also present, bringing a wide range of experience under the same roof.

And of course, we made sure to enjoy second keiko at Shabu Shabu and PJs, sharing food and refreshments together.



We would like to extend our gratitude to the Toida family for sharing keiko with us. We hope to greet you again in Montreal in the near future! Our thanks as well to our friends from MKC for their hospitality.





October 20, 2017 | Isshin Kendo Club visits Shidokan

Our sincere gratitude to our friends from Isshin Kendo Club for paying us a visit, had great keiko together!

Special thanks to Tamarow Liburd and Valiquette Sensei for all these years of friendship with Shidokan.





October 02, 2017 | Daiki Kiwada Sensei in Montreal

Daiki Kiwada Sensei, an All-Japan-Kendo Champion, visited Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal this October. While in Montreal, he led two seminars hosted by both the Montreal Kendo Club and McGill Kendo Club.

Kiwada Sensei was kind enough to show us his personal take on 'Tekubi' (wrist) drills and the way he practices kihon & uchikomi (basics and repetition drills). This was definitely refreshing, a true insight of the way a kendo champion interprets and applies the more classic approaches in kendo training.



Shidokan would like to thank both MKC and McGill for hosting and providing all kendoka in Quebec the opportunity to practice with Kiwada Sensei. We would also like to extend our gratitude to Shigemitsu Kamata Sensei for translating. And, of course, thank you very much to Kiwada Sensei for visiting and training with us here in Canada!





September 2017 | Our new recruits

The start of the Fall semester means it’s yet again time to say welcome to our new recruits. The road ahead is difficult, but we look forward to your company as we walk the path together!

We hope you can find the patience and dedication within yourselves to overcome every obstacle you may encounter in this new path. We promise you hard work and lots of fun !
Welcome to the 志道館 !





September 2017 | New beginning, Fall 2017

It's been a great start of the semester! Thank you to all our friends who visited us so far, specially our brothers from MKC as well as Schneider Sensei from UdM, and all the way from Vancouver Kendo Club in British Columbia: Jakob Schmidt. Please visit us again!







August 2017 | Last training week of Summer

Another intense Summer training comes to a close. Always a challenging task to go withstand the heat but nevertheless a satisfactory experience. We close this season sure of have gotten stronger and looking forward to apply every lesson in our next semester.

Gratitude to all our brave warriors and specially to Santoso Sensei for his constant guidance.
A big shout out to our brother Adam Ashton who paid us a visit earlier in the season: - We miss you!







Aug 05 & 06, 2017 | Canadian National Kendo Championships, Markham ON

In early August, a Shidokan contingent headed to Toronto, Ontario to compete in the 19th Canadian National Kendo Championships, held at the Markham Pan Am Center. The event, open to kendoka from all provinces, lasted two days during which an impressive level of kendo was displayed. Individuals were carried out on the Saturday, while team matches took place on the Sunday.

Our members fought well in the individuals and put up a great fight against strong opponents. During team matches, they showed great cohesion.



On the Sunday afternoon, provinces competed against one another following the format of the International Kendo Federation. Friends from McGill University Kendo Club, Québec Kendo Kai, and Université de Montréal Kendo Club, as well as members from Shidokan (Alysha Hum, Gabriel Schor and Benjamin Vial), formed the ranks of Team Québec.
Congrats to Team QC Men for obtaining the silver medal and Team QC Women: bronze medal.
A special mention to our Francis Pétrin, recipient of a fighting spirit award in Club's Team division!

The event was a fantastic opportunity to cross swords and develop friendships with kendoka from all over the country. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the organizers of the event, to the coaches of Team Québec for dedicating their time and knowledge, as well as to Santoso Sensei for his continued guidance.





June 10 & 11, 2017 | Quebec Kendo Open & Grading

On June 5th, Quebec Kendo Kai hosted a tournament open to all kendoka from neighbor provinces and states. It was a great occasion to experience shiai against different styles.

In the mudansha division, our own Tri Nguyen and Tarek El Haiba respectively placed first and third, bringing back two medals. We would like to thank Quebec Kendo Kai for hosting the event, and hope for more in the future!



The day after the Quebec Open, on June 4th, six of our members attended the grading in Quebec City to challenge their next rank. Each of them passed their exam, and it is with pride that Shidokan would like to congratulate them. Our dojo is now one yondan, one sandan, one nidan and three shodan stronger!

As Santoso Sensei says, earning a rank is a stepping stone towards the next objective. Let us keep that in mind, and train with renewed dedication.





May 2017 | New beginning

The start of the semester means it’s yet again time to say welcome to our new recruits. The road ahead is difficult, but we look forward to your company as we walk the path together!

We hope you can find the patience and dedication within yourselves to overcome every obstacle you may encounter in this new path. We promise you hard work and lots of fun !
Welcome to the "Kan"!





Apr 29 2017 | Quebec Regional Taikai - Granby

On Saturday, April 29th, a Shidokan contingent went to Granby to the bi-annual regional tournament. A special opportunity since many highly skilled players from Ontario participated as well.

The level of our competitors had noticeably improved since last spring, and they fought with fervor in their respective divisions. We would like to congratulate Tarek El Haiba (gold medal - kyu/1dan division) and Benjamin Vial (bronze medal 2dan/3dan division).



We would like to thank the Cégep de Granby for hosting the event, and look forward to meeting with the other dojos soon!





Apr 15 2017 | Easter practice

Eventhough many of our members were out of town to celebrate easter, the few remaining soldiers experienced an intense focused practice led by Santoso Sensei.

Happy Easter !





April 7 & 8, 2017 | Visit from MKC & Quebec Kendo Kai

On Friday, April 7, we received the visit of our friends from the Montreal Kendo Club. Kenji Toida Sensei and Junko Ariyama Sensei led the practice, which was laden with great exercises to help us reinforce our kihon. In particular, we were able to improve our tenouchi and to initiate our body movement from the hips, while keeping a strong center. After some much-needed kakarigeiko, during which everyone displayed strong spirit, we shared jigeiko before enjoying well-deserved refreshments at PJ's. We would like to thank Toida Sensei and Ariyama Sensei for the useful knowledge they shared with us, as well as the rest of our friends from MKC for coming in such numbers. The very next day, on April 8, four of our friends from Quebec Kendo Kai joined us for our morning practice. True to their words, they returned with all their spirit. The morning was spent focusing on getting as much keiko time as possible, after which we had a kakarigeiko to warm us up for a quick shiai. Thank you for your visit, we hope to see you again soon!







March 14 2017 | Special Visit from Kei Ouchi

On Tuesday, we had a special visit from Kei Ouchi, a visiting student from Ibaraki University in Japan. Getting a true Canadian experience, he braved the crazy snowstorm that day and we had the wonderful opportunity to keiko with him. Thank you for joining us Kei-san, and we hope there will be less snow the next time you visit!






March 07 2017 | Visit to McGill

A few of our senior members visited the McGill Kendo Club for a special practice featuring some visiting Sensei from Japan and Toronto: Tadayoshi Ito, 7th dan Kyoshi and Hidenori Yuze, 7th dan Kyoshi, from Japan. As well as Shane Kamata, 8th dan Kyoshi, from Etobicoke Kendo Club. The practice was largely focused on kihon, with some time at the end to keiko with the Sensei. Thank you to McGill for hosting this special practice and for inviting us to join you. And a special thank you to the Sensei for their guidance and teachings. We hope to see everyone again soon!






Feb 18 2017 | Montreal Iaido Seminar

On Feb 18 & 19 2017, Shidokan hosted an open Iaido Seminar with the help of the Canadian Kendo Federation.We had the honor to receive Goyo Ohmi Sensei, Kyoshi 7dan & Stephen Cruise Sensei, Renshi 7dan. It was a wonderful seminar where we had the opportunity to improve on our basics and cover each of the Seitei kata. In particular, after his recent trip to Japan to train with Itto Sensei, Cruise Sensei conveyed many key concepts through specialized drills. We were able to work on seme, tenouchi and furikaburi, amongst other things..


Our sincere gratitude to Ohmi Sensei and Cruise Sensei for leading such a great seminar. Thanks to all the participants for filling our dojo with your spirit and to our volunteers for offering such great support. We hope to see all of you again soon!






Feb 17 2017 | Visit of Jundi Toida Sensei in Montreal

On Friday Feb 17, Shidokan visited MKC and had the great opportunity to practice with Jundi Toida Sensei, visiting from Brazil. Jundi Sensei is the brother of our good Friend Julio Kenji Toida Sensei. Thank you MKC for having us! It was really great!

Looking forward to the next opportunity!






Feb 11 2017 | Visit of Quebec Kendo Kai

On Saturday Feb 11, three of our friends from Quebec Kendo Kai visited us all the way from the Univ. of Laval (Quebec City). We had the opportunity to share great keiko with each of them, and strengthen our bond with our brothers (and sisters!) in arms. Everyone showed a great display of spirit and technique.

We were also kindly invited to the Quebec Open Taikai which will take place on Saturday, June 10 at their home dojo: https://www.facebook.com/events/1581365755214093/ We look forward to seeing you soon on the battlefield!

Thank you Charles, Alex & Takeshi! Our doors are wide open, please come and visit us any time you are in Montreal!






Jan 28 2017 | Carleton University

On January 28, Shidokan participated in the 11th Intercollegiate Kendo Tournament in Carleton University, Ottawa. All our members in the Alumni category.

A great opportunity for many of our members to experience the pressure and responsibility of being Shinpan for the first time.






Jan 07 2017 | Shidokan Annual Gathering

This year started off with our annual Shidokan dinner. We gathered at Kanda for sake, sushi, and celebration.

As always, it was a time to reflect upon our accomplishments and growth from the previous year, and to set our sights on some new goals. In classic Shidokan fashion, everyone got a chance to share some words of their experience and hopes for the future.

We also celebrated the birthdays of our dear Santoso-Sensei and a few others from amongst our ranks. Let’s make 2017 another great year!






Jan 03 2017 | Keiko Hajime

A new year, a new beginning! Shidokan kicks off 2017 with great expectation and fully motivated to keep learning and improving together.

Let's make of 2017 another succesful year!






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