Japan and Me

At the age of five, I started practicing kendo with my parents. My mother was teaching children from Ko Jika Kendo Club in Ghent, and before I could fully realize it, connections with Japan were taking shape. We have had the privilege in Belgium of Hirakawa Sensei’s visits twice a year, teaching us 'the way of the sword' in a strict and severe tradition.

At the age of twenty, I went to the 'International Budo University' for daily practice during one year. Discipline in a Japanese dojo is even more rigorous, and even hard to understand at times for a foreigner while practicing twice a day and biting through the winter ‘gashiku’. Especially the early mornings and the coldness were really tough. Those times gave me great memories because this tradition is how the character and spirit of a strong kendoka is really molded in Japan year after year.

During the summer vacation, I took the chance to stay at Hirakawa sensei's house for one month. I travelled throughout Japan with my Sensei to thoroughly practice the art. Tokai university, Nikko and even the "Nippon Budokan" were really unforgettable venues. My Sensei taught me a lot about kendo, but he also immerged me in the world of Japanese culture and food.

Back in Belgium again, I was able to continue practicing kendo with my Japanese wife, while our daughter adds a lot of joy and so much energy to our daily life. Nowadays, we travel around the world where we meet plenty of people who share the same interests, while finding life changing friendships inherent to ‘Budo’.

In 2015 the World Kendo Championships will take place at the "Nippon Budokan". It's a dream of every kendoka to be able to show his best Kendo skills at this legendary place. The Belgium team and I are therefore really looking forward to taking this wonderful opportunity.