Greetings senseis and fellow iaidoka!
I would like to cordially invite all of you to Toronto this August 7th and 8th for the 2010 Canadian Open Iaido Championship. Many apologies for the slightly short notice – securing a venue that is central and large enough for an event such as this is often a challenge. The format will follow that which is used for the Ontario Open, which is comprised of a day-long seminar on Saturday August 7th, and the taikai itself on Sunday August 8th. This event will be held in Kobayashi Hall at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto, Ontario (directions and address here: http://www.jccc.on.ca/contact/contact.htm)
Taikais in Canada seem to be gaining some momentum, judging from the attendance levels of the Ontario Open tournaments of the last two years. For those of you that competed in previous Canadian Opens (Ottawa 2007, Etobicoke 2004, Guelph 2001), this will be an opportunity to continue a tradition that began in Canada almost a decade ago. For those of you that have not, it is an opportunity to show your iai to sensei in the spirit of friendly competition, to see some fantastic iaido, and join in a tradition that is instrumental in furthering the “way of the sword” in Canada.
The seminar portion will be held on Saturday August 7th. Led by Kim Taylor-sensei (7th dan), it will at this point will emphasize ZNKR iaido as well as a small taikai judging sub-seminar. Details are still being worked out with all the involved senseis, but a tentative schedule is included in this email.
The tournament will be held on Sunday August 8th. We have the privilege of having Goyo Ohmi-sensei (iaido 7th dan renshi), Kim Taylor-sensei (iaido 7th dan renshi, jodo 5th dan) and Steven Cruise-sensei (iaido 7th dan renshi) on hand to preside over and judge at the Tournament. The format will be highly dependent on the number of participants, but thus far the plan is a round-robin competition initially, followed by a single-elimination “ladder”, based on the results of the round-robin. This way, everyone will have ample opportunity to show their iai. This will be followed by a “Team” competition. For those of you unfamiliar with Team competition, it is similar to the individual competition, except with teams of three iaidoka of differing ranks (listed below).
The iaido divisions presently include:
1/ Godan and up
2/ Sandan/Yondan
3/ Nidan
4/ Shodan
5/ Ikkyu
6/ Mudansha
7/ Team (Yondan+, Nidan/Sandan, Shodan and below)
IN ADDITION, this year we are introducing an OPEN JODO division in the Canadian Open. In an effort to promote the practice of jodo in Canada, there will be a single-elimination (no round-robin) taikai for jodo practitioners. The details of this portion are still being sorted out, but please note that there will not be a jodo seminar attached to it, and tournament registration fees are reflective of this. Please refer to the tentative schedule for timing:
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Saturday August 7th – Iaido/Tournament Judging Seminar
Led by Kim Taylor-sensei
8:30 AM–9:00 AM – Registration
9:00 AM–12:00 PM – Warm up, Seitei Iaido (all levels)
12:00 PM–1:00 PM – Lunch
1:00 PM–3:00 PM – Koryu and kumitachi
3:00 PM–5:00 PM – Judging Seminar (4D+)
Set up Match Courts for tournament
Practice taikai for judges and competitors (TBD)
5:30 PM – ? Dinner at Tako Sushi
Sunday August 8th – Canadian Open Iaido Championships
Led by Goyo Ohmi-sensei, Kim Taylor-sensei, Stephen Cruise-sensei
8:30 AM–9:00 AM – Sign-in
9:00 AM–12:00 PM – Singles Competition: Round Robin then Single Elimination
12:00 PM–1:00 PM – Lunch
1:00 PM–2:00 PM – Jodo Competition: Single Elimination
2:00 PM–3:30 PM – Singles Competition Finals, Team Competition
3:30 PM–4:30 PM – Demonstrations
4:30 PM–5:00 PM – Awards ceremony and Closing Remarks
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Stay tuned for updates! We are in the process of setting up a small webpage with all the information you need for this event, so watch your inbox for the link. In the meantime, I have attached the pre-registration form to this email for distribution to students.
As this is an “open” event, all CKF-affiliated and AUSKF-affiliated dojos are invited and encouraged to participate, and make this national championship a success!
P.S. I’m in the continual process of building my contact email list, so if I’ve missed anyone on this mailing (particularly our friends in the U.S.), please feel free to forward it to them, or anyone else you think would be interested…
In addition, while there will be awards provided for this competition, please feel free to donate items as awards for Fighting Spirit, etc.
Thanks everyone!
Kevin Adams
President, Mu Mon Kai/JCCC Iaido Club
Tournament Co-Ordinator
Simon Fraser University Kendo Club 