2006 Australian Iaido & Jodo Championships

23rd - 29th January 2006

Wollongong, NSW

 

As some of you may be aware, in the week Monday 23 to Sunday 29 January, the NSWKA hosted the 16th Australian Iaido Championships and the 6th Australian Jodo Championships, and joint Seminar at the University of Wollongong.

 

In its most successful championships since the new combined Iai / Jo seminar format commenced in 2000, NSW finished second overall, with 2 second places, in the Iaido 3 dan+ individuals (Bob Brown), and in the Iaido dan teams (Dean Hawthorn, Bob Brown, Aden Steinke).  Victoria winning all the first places and some of the seconds dominated the championships.

The Seminar / Championships had 84 Australian/NZ participants, with 10 visiting Japanese sensei and AKR President Ron Bennett in attendance, making it the second largest held to date despite the small size of the NSWKA Iaido / Jodo membership base.  There were 62 successful grading attempts, up to 4th dan in Jodo and 3rd dan in Iaido, Wollongong's Ian Cracknell gained his shodan in both iaido and jodo.

 

Participants came from all AKR affiliates, with people from all states and the ACT.  All NSWKA Iaido/Jodo dojos had participants.  We gained local TV and radio coverage, and it appeared on the University of Wollongong web page http://media.uow.edu.au/news/2006/0130a/index.html.

 

At this stage there are still a few things still to be finalised such as shipping the gear off to Tasmania for the next championship, getting additional souvenir tee shirts printed and sent to the sensei in Japan (this was the first time they have ever requested them, a great honour for NSW as hosts) , hence the lateness of this report :).  All interstate (and most NSWKA) participants received a Wollongong championships commemorative tsuba laser cut from 4mm steel in the shape of the Wollongong mon - as Wollongong is still mostly known as a steel making city we put some thought (and Bob Brown put much effort) into the creation of a suitable memento.  In keeping with the theme the sensei presentation gifts and the 1st/2nd place trophies were a modified version of the tsuba so almost 100 were prepared and distributed.

 

Sucessfull NSWKA Grading Candidates

 

Iai / Jo

Surname

Given Name

State

Dojo

 Grade

Iaido

Balderama

Lyma

NSW

Suigetsu

 K-5

Iaido

Cracknell

Ian

NSW

Wollongong

 D-1

Jodo

Cracknell

Ian

NSW

Wollongong

 D-1

Iaido

Naumovski

Steve

NSW

Wollongong

 K-3

Iaido

Steele

James

NSW

Wollongong

 K-2

Iaido

Steinke

Aden

NSW

Wollongong

 D-2

Iaido

Trevillion

Christina

NSW

Blue Leaf

 K-2

Iaido

Trevillion

Douglas

NSW

Blue Leaf

 K-3

Iaido

Wang

Jeff

NSW

Blue Leaf

 K-6

 

NSWKA Competition Results

 

Iaido 3 Dan+ Individuals, runner up Bob Brown

Iaido 1-3 Kyu Individuals, semi finalist James Steele

Iaido dan teams, runner up Dean Hawthorn, Bob Brown, Aden Steinke

Jodo dan pairs, semi finalist Bob Brown, Aden Steinke

 

 

Aden Steinke

Secretary UOWKC

Secretary AKR Jodo Technical Board

http://www.uow.edu.au/~aden/