|
Nine
martial arts enthusiasts, mostly from Gloucester, are heading to
the far east to improve their ninja skills and techniques.
The
group will fly out on Wednesday April 7 and will spend 19 days in
Noda, 50 miles north of Tokyo under the guidance of Dr Hatsumi.
 For most of us travelling to Japan, this
is our first opportunity to train directly under the Grand Master
- Dr Hatsum.
|
| Michelle
Murray |
Michelle
Murray, who lives and trains locally in Gloucester, is one of the
highest ranking women in the world in Ninjutsu, and is hoping to
attain one of the toughest grades, 'Godan'- that of 'sixth-sense'.
Michelle
said: "For most of us travelling to Japan, this is our first
opportunity to train directly under the Grand Master - Dr Hatsumi,
it is something that we have been training towards for many years.
This really is the opportunity of a life-time for anyone involved
in Ninjutsu".
Fighting
techniques
Ninjutsu
is the martial art of the notorious 'Ninja' and encourages students
to learn skills of preservation with fighting techniques aimed at
ending confrontation quickly, alongside developing life-long skills
such as confidence and self-awareness.
 |
|
Bruce
sees Michelle's point
|
Bruce,
Shizuka na Arashi, one of the instructors going from the Budo Warrior
School, said, "I am hoping to improve my understanding, experience
the culture that created our art, and return a better instructor.
"It
is hard to put into words without
seeing Dr Hatsumi training, but he is amazing. His excellence and
ease of movement is something we all strive to achieve."
It
is hard to put into words without
seeing Dr Hatsumi training, but he is amazing. His excellence
and ease of movement is something we all strive to achieve.
|
| Bruce,
Shizuka na Arashi |
Geared
mainly towards adults - Ninjutsu is now the fastest growing martial
art in the United Kingdom.
While
in Japan, several of the team are also hoping to improve their 'dan'
grades.
Traditionally
certain gradings can only be achieved by demonstrating the techniques
to Dr Hatsumi who is the only person in the world who has the authority
to pass or fail a student.
Bruce
explained, "We often refer to our training as a journey; meeting
and training with our Grand Master is one of the most exciting stops
along the way. That's forgetting the
obvious fact that this would be a trip of a lifetime if all we were
doing was being tourists. Wow, what a way to spend Easter."
.................................................
Read
some of the features you may have missed in our
archive
section or
get in touch at gloucestershire@bbc.co.uk.
|
Nine
local men and women are set to go on a trip of a lifetime to train
with Dr Masaaki Hatsumi - the only Grand Master still living and training
in the martial art of Ninjutsu.
