Thrown Into Unforgiving Hardwood Floors: Kyoto Martial Arts Festivals Award Maltese Jiujitsu Team
The Maltese Jiujitsu team has been awarded the Commending Team Award and their teachers were awarded the International Butoku Outstanding Leadership Award while in Japan at a recent competition.
Hailing from Jiushin Kan Malta, the Maltese martial artists travelled to Japan to represent Malta at the sixth World Butoku Sai and 61st Japan Butoku Sai – respective Martial Arts Virtues Festivals.
“Landing in Tokyo, we hit the ground running and did not waste a single day,” the team expressed.
They were among 800 participants from 25 countries, even with participation limited due to strictly enforced COVID-19 restrictions.
These events were organised in Kyoto’s prestigious Dei Nippon Butoku Kai, which was originally established in 1895 to promote and standardise martial disciplines throughout Japan, aiming for the preservation of Samurai culture.
Christian and Roderick Bajada – who run Jiushin Kan Malta – brought their students, Gianluca Curmi, Andrew Carter, and Dejan Vencelovski, to Japan to partake in these proceedings.
Prior to the team’s appearance in Kyoto, they trained at highly acclaimed jiujitsu schools in Tokyo. One of these visits brought the Bajada brothers to train with Master of Leglocks (Ashikan Judan) Masakazu Imanari in Tokyo.
President of the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai chose the Bajada brothers to demonstrate powerful Jiujitsu throws directly on the wooden floor – without protective mats.
During the official opening ceremony – the Bajada brothers were awarded the International Butoku Outstanding Leadership Award.
This was given to the Maltese duo in the presence of the Imperial Highness Princess Akiko of Mikasa – a member of the Imperial House of Japan.
The following day, at the main event of the World Butoku Sai, the Maltese team demonstrated their jiujitsu on the wooden floor of the historic Kyoto Butokuden – Japan’s most prestigious dojo – which earned Team Malta the Commending Team Award.
On the final day of their stay, Team Malta once again demonstrated their jiujitsu skills, as well as Iaido, for which all team members were individually awarded.
Jiujitsu is a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armoured opponents – while Iaido is a martial art emphasising total situational awareness, and the capacity to quickly draw a weapon in response to a sudden attack.
During closing ceremonies, the Bajada brothers were promoted to seventh degree Sichidan black belt level – and awarded the title of Kyoshi, Master Teacher – becoming the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai International Division members to reach this rank.
Although Malta has not developed indigenous martial artistry – the Jiushin Kan Malta is part of a growing trend showing that Maltese athletes can develop and hone the discipline and skill sets necessary to excel within the realm of martial arts on an International level – and compete with the very best.
“Whatever we did, whether it was training and sparring in Tokyo – to demonstrating in Kyoto at the World Martial Arts Virtues Festival – the Maltese delegation held Malta’s name up high.”
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