Kendo

Since 1969, the Ottawa Kendo Club has been practising at the Takahashi School of Martial Arts. All of our instructors are volunteers.

Kendo is the traditional martial art of Japanese fencing, a martial art that has descended from the kenjutsu sword disciplines of the feudal samurai. Kendo is full-contact, utilizing a bamboo sword (shinai) as our weapon and thick armour (bogu) as our protection. It takes many months before a beginner is allowed to wear bogu and spar with others as it takes time to develop a foundation of etiquette, fitness and skills before someone is ready. Once one is in bogu, much of the time will still be spent developing new techniques and refining established ones. A kendo practitioner is always learning.

Kendo is a martial art, and as such a high standard of discipline and respect for others is expected. Kendo is an ideal way of cultivating one's character through rigorous practice, sparring with others and interacting with people who have the same goals for themselves. It is not intended as self-defence, but is a great way of instilling a natural confidence, poise and awareness that can aid in a variety of everyday situations. It's also a great way of blowing off steam in a controlled and productive manner!

In Japan, boys and girls are introduced to kendo and judo at a very young age and to many in Japan, kendo is the equivalent of what hockey is to Canadians.

The longevity of a practitioner's career in kendo is one of the longest of all the traditional martial arts. There are kendo practitioners in their 80s who still come out and join in regular practise and are able to hold their own or prevail against the younger folks during sparring!

The Ottawa Kendo Club is split into two class streams: one for adults and one for children. Please see the Schedules page to see when each group practises. Children who reach the age of 16 are encouraged to join the adult class. The adult class is more rigorous and disciplined than the children's class but the practices are more frequent and the learning happens a lot more quickly.

Who can do kendo? You can do kendo if you can follow instruction and persevere through challenging practices. We hope to see you soon.

The Ottawa Kendo Club is divided into two groups: the adult and children's classes. Advanced members of the children's class who are of sufficient size and fitness can participate in the regular adult class if they would like the extra practise. No classes will be held during statutory holidays and holiday weekends.

Adult Class

Led by Mike Arai (5th Dan), the adult class has been running since the inception of the Ottawa Kendo Club. Among the regular members there are several Dan (black belt) kendo practitioners. Members are 16 years old and up, although fit younger members may join with the instructor's permission. Two classes are offered: Fundamentals and Advanced. All grading (1st Kyu and up) is done by the Canadian Kendo Federation.

Children's Class

Mike Arai (5th Dan) leads the children's kendo class, with Katherine Neufield and Chris Hodgins (both 1st Dan) assisting. The children's class has been running for over 2 years now and has been getting bigger every year! The age range of our current class is 5 to 15 with varying levels of ability. The class is usually separated into the more advanced bogu-wearing members and those that are less experienced. Class routine is primarily basic training with additional sparring for the more advanced members. There are also games and relays to keep things fun. Kiai (shouting) contests always go over well!

We have annual inhouse grading for the children in the spring.

 

The Takahashi Dojo provides Kendo classes for both adults and children.

Day	Time	Age	Level	Type
Monday	6:30-7:30pm	Adult	All	Fundamentals
Monday	7:30-9:00pm	Adult	Bogu	Advanced
Wednesday	6:30-7:30pm	Adult	All	Fundamentals
Wednesday	7:30-9:00pm	Adult	Bogu	Advanced
Saturday	11:00-12:00pm	Adult	All	Practice
Saturday	12:00-1:30pm	Adult	Iaido+	Class
Saturday	1:30-3:00pm	Children	All	Instruction, Keiko