Local Tournament in Wisconsin
Sunday, March 5th a Judo Tournament took place in Wahadachi, a suburb of Milwaukee. Local Tournament? 354 participants and 600 including spectators. 24 kids from Tohkon participated in the tournament. The seconds were Doug and myself. This article is about a wintery day where we fought together with the kids.
90 minutes straight north from Chicago is Milwaukee
Lutheran High School had a huge gym. We laid out 4 rings in this gym.
1. Always straight and honest – seconds for kids are more important.
My mission is to as to assume the second for kids and have them win as much matches as possible. Last year, I was a bit shy a couldn’t do much, but tis year was different. The bind between myself and the kids were stronger which made me more emotional. I wasn’t shy and screaming out of my lungs until the last second, in English!! Kids did their best to bide with my advice. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
Kids are honest and pure, but for them the 3 minute round is the same as my Kodokan Cup (the premier event in Japan) I needed to be calm, assess the situation, and provide the best advice at the right timing. I felt that I have a lot of room for improvement as a second.
Warm up prior to the match. The match starts from here – are you ready?
7 year old Rana – a bit nervous before the match.
2. Fight with all your might to win, but after the match, respect – beautiful situation in U.S.
I have been watching the kids as a coach, but since I am a mother now, I was able to watch them from a different perspective. Kids, after the match, run straight to their parent. Being celebrated after a win, getting hugs after crying with a loss – regardless of the situation, parents hug them.
In Japan, where I grew up, Judo was more strict that fun. If you lose a match, you’ll see kids getting scolded by their coaches and parents. Fortunately, my coach never scolded me for a loss – which still was tough – but that was one big factor that my retirement was very late.
You must walk alone on the mat – a lonely battle, but regardless of the result, big hugs with a “Good Job!!” and the kids turn positive. This is something that doesn’t exist in Japan. I need to be an educator like them, as well as a mom.
“Hugs are the strongest weapon to maintain motivation and expand the kids possibilities to infinity”.
Tohkon’s ace Mike lost with a beautiful IPPON, but the opponent was an Olympian. Nick, a two time Olympian in London and Rio.
An Olympian in a local event???
Be proud of yourself, even if you lose.
3. Another drama – the challenge of Kealyn – the blind girl.
You may recall on my previous article, Kealyn – a visually impaired girl. This tournament was her debut!! She participated in the Adults category and fought against a person I coach and know very well. Different than in Japan, US Local events have Visually Impaired persons participate in the normal class/category. The only difference is that they start after they grab each other. Kealyn was 2 battles 2 loss, but after the match, she screamed “I love matches, I am excited with the new experience!!” and was positive, but never forgot respect to the opponent. “My opponent was great both as an athlete and as a human – she fought with me sincerely”. This is purely in the direction of 自他共栄（principle of mutual welfare and benefit） Also from the opponent a comment “Since it’s so diverse, I felt it was a test of my sincereness” which only persons who truly fought can say. If she showed hesitation due to the opponent’s visual imparity, that would be disrespectful. It’s something that I had never experienced before. Diversity is part of life – that’s the greatness of the United States. “Good Job!!” to both of them.
Great match Kealyn – let’s get stronger together.
4. Lastly
There were 18 kids and 6 adults – a total of 24 participants from Tohkon. An amazing result with 14 Gold Medals, 6 Silvers, and 5 Bronzes. (Participation in max 2 categories is allowed). Through these matches I learn something different each time. Although the match is for kids, I learn a lot from them. Judo is not just about winning. It’s a tool that grows you as an individual. I believe seeing value in the drama for each individual is critical.
Next round, Indiana!!
My Tohkon Kids…
Great Job to all of you!!
