Italian soldiers are facing the embarrassment of being beaten up daily by a 77-year-old Japanese grandmother.

This article is compliments of www.telegraph.co.uk I had to share it!



Martial arts expert Keiko Wakabayshi, nicknamed the "Samurai Granny", has been hired by the country's military to train recruits in hand-to-hand combat.

Miss Wakabayshi, who stands exactly 5ft tall, looks tiny compared to her charges who are mostly over 6ft.

But the pensioner is a trained master in an array of martial arts disciplines including jujitsu, jojitso, kenjitso, judo, kendo and karate.



She wipes the floor with soldiers of the Folgore brigade at their barracks in Livorno on a daily basis.

Miss Wakabayshi was born in Japan but now lives in Northern Italy.

She tells her students to look at her and believe that nothing is impossible.

After flooring an opponent she tells them: "Don't think it's unbelievable. The physique doesn't matter."

Sparring is regarded as the most effective method of teaching martial arts and senior Italian military officers hope the experience of being humiliated by Miss Wakabayshi will toughen up their soldiers.

Miss Wakabayshi trained for many years to achieve her level of expertise and believes she can carry on defeating brawny soldiers for years to come.

The term martial arts is synonymous with the Far East, but actually derives from Mars, the Roman god of war and literally means the "arts of war".

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Testing times in Noosa at Karate Budokan!

Day 1.

Saturday of the Karate Budokan International, Noosa Winter Black belt grading has come to an end with all of the candidates exhausted and also relieved to have completed 60% of the test.
The 1st day consisted of 90 minutes of Kihon (Basics) and Ido (combinations), this was followed by 60 minutes of Kata performance.
This grading we have 7 candidates for Shodan (1st Dan) and 2 candidates for Nidan (2nd Dan).

Some of the emotions on display were nervous anticipation, excitement, fear, confidence and of course focussed energy.

A lot of the friends and family in for support were displaying more nerves than the candidates!
Also completing the 1st day of the grading was Students testing themselves in anticipation of being invited to the Summer Black belt grading in December.

All of the Noosa members of the Queensland team trained as part of their preparation for the National titles in Perth.
The energy on the tatami was great and contagious.

3 candidates are testing for their junior Black Belt, these three young boys have come all the way through the KBI Little Legend program and are now on the last stage of achieving their long awaited Junior Shodan, this is a great achievement for these young Karateka to display the focus & determination required to reach this goal.


Day 2.



Sunday was an amazing climax to this fantastic test of endurance, skill & determination that is the Black belt. The day started with our candidates demonstrating their proficient self defence, covering defences against strikes, grabs, chokes, head locks, kicks & knives!

This was finished with a display of self defence against two attackers, very entertaining & inspiring. The self defence was followed by the kumite drills which is a very demanding effort displaying endurance & perserverance.

Then the test finishes with the required 5 one minute rounds of Jyu Kumite (Free sparing), awesome effort, courage, versatility & skill was on display. Some of our candidates had to contend with the best fighters KBI has, these are National & Australian open champions!

They came through with class, extremely exhausted, emotions were running high, as was sore bodies & fatique. However the smiles from the knowledge that they had made it was fantastic an memorable.
A Black belt is definitely something that you earn but more importantly it is something that you become, it's far more than just a cloth around your Dogi.

So as the weekend came to a close we had seven extremely tired deserving new Shodans and two new Nidans, with a Dojo full of family, friends and fellow Karateka cheering them on. It was also wonderful to see the look of satisfaction and pride on the faces of the Senseis that had helped our candidates achieve their Karate dream.

We would like to wish Jake Lowe, Patrick Gelling, Grant De Chastel, Lara Pogson-Manning, John Studdock, Aprile Nuske & Sophie Wrigley a warm welcome to our KBI Black belt family. Mitch Lollback & Luke Walker now as you are a Nidan the journey gets bigger & better. Well done everyone!


Until next time.

Yours in Karate,

Shihan

NOOSA'S KARATE STARS TO WEAR THE GREEN & GOLD!

Noosa Heads, Queensland Australia has cemented its position as a dominant force in the sport of karate by having six members chosen for the Australian National karate team at the Australian Open held at Caloundra on the 11th to the 13th of April.
The national team will be competing in the Oceania championships in New Zealand in September.

First time Australian team members Ashleigh Jones, Luke Walker, Matthew Shelley, Cheyenne Jarvis & Ruby Drew are thrilled at their selection. Zakaria Khalid & Harrison Fox have been named by selectors as reserves. 2008 is a big year on the international calendar with the Oceania championships to be held in NZ in September & the senior world championship to be held in Tokyo in November.

Karate Budokan chief instructor Wayne MacDonald was very impressed with the teams results at the selection event in Caloundra. Wayne said it was their hard efforts leading up to the event that secured their place in the team. Noosa has an amazing depth of talent in sport karate and this pool is breeding success. At the last Oceania championships in 2006 we had 3 members in the squad.

To make the Australian team is every athlete's dream, now these guys are ready to take the next step and turn that into an Oceania title.
As sport karate is a non-funded endeavour it is now up to our athletes to secure sponsorship and raise money for the cost of representing Australia, this includes travel, clothing, and entry & training fees.

KBI had 20 members contest the championships, 19 from Noosa & Scott Fletcher from Richmond. Scott was unlucky to miss out on National team selection after narrowly losing his fight off in extra time!

Congratulations to all of our athletes Zakaria Khalid (Bronze), Blake Walker (Bronze), Luke O'Meara, Jack Drew, Shelby Slade, Madeleine Blackman, Harrison Fox, Luke Walker (Bronze), Yohei Suzuki, Tyson McEwen, Aimee Avery, Ruby Drew (2 x Bronze), Matthew Shelley (Gold & Silver), Mitchell Barber (Silver), Scott Fletcher (Silver & Bronze), Charlotte Degiorgio (Bronze), Cheyenne Jarvis (Silver), Mitchell Lollback, Ashleigh Jones (Gold & 2 x Bronze) & Jessica Reid (2 x Bronze).

Ashleigh Jones & Matthew Shelley took individual gold medals and our 12 to 15 years girls kumite team took bronze and our 15 to 17 years boys kumite team came home with the silver.
Karate Budokan will be conducting a variety of fundraising events leading up to the championships. If you are interested in sponsoring our stars please call Karate Budokan on 54555222 or email sensei@karatebudokan.com, every little bit helps. Visit http://www.karateworld.com.au for all your latest Karate stories.

Shihans Training Tip to improve your kicks!

An Interview with a young Champion.

Mitchell Barber, 17 of Noosa Heads in Queensland, Australia has recently returned from a visit to India where he competed in the Indian National Cahampionships in the Senior division for the first time and came home with Gold. Mitchell has kindly granted Karate World with this interview.

Mitchell congratulations on your success in India.

What was your impression of the Indian Athletes?

My impression of the Indian competitors was great. Compared to some of the competitors at home in Australia, their attitude is very good. As I was fighting my first match I realised that they have a lot of heart and determination to win, but even if they don’t they still have smiles on their faces and I think some Australian competitors could learn a lot from their attitude.

How did the competitors feel about you competing in their National titles?

Most of the competitors and spectators were ok with me competing in their tournament, but I often got bad vibes and weird looks from the fans of the guy I was fighting in the final. I think some of the older coaches weren’t very happy about an international competitor to start with but they gradually started to accept it and enjoy themselves.

What can the Karate Budokan India do to improve their results in competition?

I think that if the Indian students had a more variety of coaches to train them it would greatly benefit their competition skills in both kata and Kumite. Also if they had a high number of international competitors to train with them so they can get used to the way the rest of the world is fighting and performing kata. They need to know what standard the rest of the world is.

How did you feel going into your first senior Kumite division?

I was quite nervous going into the first match mainly because it was my first time fighting in the men’s division. I thought I was going to get the crap beaten out of me. But when the match started I realised that I had a chance, my best memory from all of the matches was when I won the second fight 8-0 it was the first time I had ever done that.

As a Sensei at the Honbu Dojo what is your tip for the Indian instructors?

One bit of advice I would give to the senseis of India is to include more variety into their dojo’s curriculum. Such as partner work and fitness exercises. Also, the kids would also enjoy training a lot more if an extra element of fun is added, this would also help with member retention.

Finally what feelings did you take away from this trip and championship?

I feel extremely privileged to be able to travel to India again, and to be able to win in the adults division and take home a trophy is the icing on the cake. I am amazed that I was able to win a tournament in another country and I don’t think it will ever sink in.
It was one of the best experiences of my life.

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Below is Mitchells Smile of Success!

The Japanese government is set to make Martial arts compulsory learning!

The government's plan to make martial arts a compulsory subject at middle schools has a small snag. There are not enough physical education teachers that have the skills or experience to properly instruct students in these arts. In a bid to improve the abilities of teachers in charge of martial arts at public middle and high schools, the government plans to set up "martial arts promotion associations" comprising experts in martial arts education in each prefecture from next academic year, according to sources. The government also is considering allowing teachers to study instructional methods at private dojo or sports-science universities that offer martial arts courses. A proposal to make martial arts compulsory was included in an interim report on school teaching guidelines released on Oct. 30 by the Central Council for Education, an advisory body to Education, Science and Technology Minister Kisaburo Tokai. The panel suggested the measure could be implemented in the 2011 academic year at the earliest. However, Tokai has suggested this date could be brought forward to the 2009 academic year. Middle school students can select the martial art they wish to study, with the current school teaching guideline mentioning judo, kendo and sumo as examples of martial arts. Some schools teach naginata (pike sparring), kyudo archery and karate, but kendo and judo are the most widely taught. If martial arts are made compulsory, a number of students, mostly girls, are expected to opt for naginata or kyudo classes. The ministry deemed it necessary to create a learning environment where physical education teachers acquire expertise and knowledge of a wider range of martial arts. The ministry has allocated about 50 million yen in its budget request for next fiscal year for setting up the associations and training teachers at universities.Wouldn't this be a wonderful concept to implement in schools worldwide, with the life skills & values that martial arts teaches we would be ensured of a better, friendlier & safer world.

Yours in Karate do,

Shihan

www.karateworld.com.au

Boy beats meningitis with Karate training.

A WORKINGTON boy who beat meningitis has now achieved his black belt in karate.
Sonny Smith, 13, of Rose Hill, Harrington, competed for the top belt on Sunday and passed the test.
He was given a slim chance of survival after contracting meningitis when he was seven and it left him tired and weak.
Sonny started attending karate classes with his friends at the Hokushinko martial arts centre in Workington and his confidence and strength grew.
His father David said: “It is a massive achievement. I never thought he would have got so far. After he came out of hospital he was so poorly.
“Now he has done so well. He has more confidence and more self belief. It is unbelievable how far he has come. We are the proudest family in the world.”
Sonny felt ill on Valentine’s Day in 2001 and went to bed with medicine.
David said: “We phoned the doctors because he wasn’t well. We gave him a bath before talking to the doctors. He was stiff as a board. You could see bruising on him. We called the doctor and they sent an ambulance.
“A paediatrician came down and got him to a children’s ward. For 48 hours we were never away from the hospital.
“We were told there was a slim chance of him pulling through. It was as if our life had been taken away. We didn’t know what was going to happen or if we were going to have a little lad by the end of it or what damage would be caused. There was no life in him. Things have been a struggle.”
Mark Hodgson, who teaches Sonny, said: “I treat Sonny the same as anyone else and the black belt is the pinnacle of what we do. He did really well, it is a long, hard test.”

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Until next time.

Yours in Karate do,

Shihan