Training

During 2008 the Wakarishin Squad had made a great impact on the domestic/international competition arena. Winning many medals, spanning 3 competitions (BJJA championships/UNJJ International/Danish Open), needless to say that this Squad had set a huge challenge for the Squad of 2009 to reach for.

There was a clear intention from the outset that being a member of the 2008 squad would not guarantee anyone automatic qualification into the 2009 squad. This really acted as a great motivator for all, and kept us all very hungry in those opening months of training. Not only were we competing against former squad members, but there was also a new crop of perspective members ‘trying out’ for the squad.

For me personally, it felt like every Friday I was going into competition! I found myself gauging all my training throughout the week so I could arrive on Friday in the freshest condition. A big motivator for this mindset came from the fact that at 32 yrs old I had to keep pace with the whole squad (whose average age was about 14 / 15. Teenagers who had bags of stamina and pace, and highly motivated to leave a wheezing 3rd Dan in their tracks!

The content of each Squad session varied. One week would be a massive physical test, and the next week we would be very analytical, and try and work on finer points of our various categories. Sensei Ian kept us all guessing on what sort of training session we would be in for. All I know is that I always turned up having consumed a lot of carbs ready to burn!

Southend International 2009

As co-host for this competition, the pressure was on to perform. The competition always attracts a good mix of International competition who are eager to take home some UK medals.

As for Sensei Dave and me, it was a busy day. We had a number of responsibilities which kept us from being involved with the squad for the whole day. We had talked a lot in training about the impact that the warm up and huddle had made in 2008, and how much it fired everyone up for the day. So when I had the opportunity to watch the warm up from the audiences’ perspective, I could take in for the first time the effect it generated.

The atmosphere at Southend is always a big one, and 2009 seemed even bigger. It was a good test of how far we had come since January, and the squad took a lot of positives from the day (as well as a good number of medals) that would put us into good stead for the Nationals at the end of the month.

BJJAGB 2009

There was not much of a turn around between Southend and the trip up to Wolverhampton for the National Championships so we were lucky to be staying in the great facilities of The Village Hotel, Wolverhampton. This gave us the chance to relax before the comp.

It was quite a warm day when we arrived in Solihull, so after watching the first game of the Lions Tour of South Africa, Ben and I decided to go for a swim to freshen up. Unfortunately the empty pool we had observed on our way to the changing rooms now contained a number of our junior squad members….who proceeded to ambush and repeatedly dunk both Ben and myself! After surviving the ‘how long can you hold your breath’ swimming pool experience, the squad relaxed by punting around a ball on a near by field and enjoy the early summer sunshine.

Competition day arrived and our contingent made it’s way down to the Sports Centre where we had made such a significant impact the previous year. There were a few ‘jangling’ nerves amongst us. Despite being told we could not have any mat room/time to go through our pre-comp routine, we managed to do our warm up behind the main stand in the ‘competitor’s area’.

Much of the morning was taken up with Random Attacks and Kata. Almost everyone made it through their first two rounds, which showed that we had certainly turned up to do some serious competing, and as the sports commentators love to say “not just there to make the numbers up”.

There is always a great atmosphere in the waiting area of any Random attack mat. Although invariably everyone has their ‘game face’ on, there is always plenty of banter to subside the nerves enough for me to walk on the mat without shaking uncontrollably.

It became apparent that my first round would be starting quite a way down the running order. Over the past few years I have found the best way to prepare for randoms is to uke as much as possible prior to the first round. Although some may think that this isn’t the done thing as you are assisting people who you may eventually be competing against later on, I prefer to think that helping out is very much in keeping with being a ‘good sport’. Apart from making more friends, it also helped to prepare the body for when my time came to defend and certainly gets the adrenaline flowing nicely.

With most of my categories completed, I had time to watch and support some of my team mates as they competed in the Continuous Sparring. The quality of sparring was good, and despite Ben being ‘blood-binned’ from the comp, and a worrying (at the time) injury to Gerard’s eye, the squad faired well. We were all very relieved that Gerard and Ben had survived A and E (without amputation), and eventually made their way back to us in good condition.

As the competition came down to the last few categories, the whole squad came together to cheer on our team mates who were still competing in final stages of the competition. The cheering was great, and the Wakarishin supporters were also in good voice (thank you family and friends!).

The cheering continued throughout the medal ceremony with Wakarishin winning a great number of medals. Beaming smiles were all around, lots of hand shakes and warm embraces. As the ceremony and celebrations continued, I crept out into the now sweltering heat of the late afternoon to meet up with Ben who was on his way back from A and E (to get his chin glued back together!). Luckily I did not have long to wait and met Ben at the door, where he hurriedly put his blood-stained gi back on to go and collect his medal for sparring.

We had trained hard, sweat ‘buckets’, made personal sacrifices to get where we were and come through the whole experience with a huge sense of pride in what we had achieved together.

Unfortunately a number of the squad had to return home that evening. It was a shame as after all our achievements and hard work, it would have been nice to be able to relax together and share our stories of the day. That said, a small group of us did make it out to a very nice curry house and enjoy some spicy cuisine, with celebrations continuing onwards until the early hours!

UNJJ Blackpool

After a six week break, the Squad reconvened in August to start training for the UN Congress in Blackpool. I’m sure I can speak for most of the Adult contingent when I say that the first few weeks were very challenging. As usual the younger members of the squad just seemed to eat up the shuttle runs and gut-busting drills, easily managing to look fresh to do more! I for one was glad to have survived that first session and get through in one piece.

As the weeks went past training did not get any easier, but the body gradually got used to the weekly shock. As the final week of training approached, we all felt relatively lean and hungry, eager to make our trip northward.

We travelled up on Friday and arrived too early to check into our B and B. So we all piled into the local greasy spoon, and enjoyed a very healthy ‘fry up’. Athletes through and through! To help us digest our lovely brunch, we had a ‘walk’ along the sea front, which was quite a bracing experience. Strong winds coming in from the Irish Sea helped to revive us after our long drive. Returning to our B and B we finally were allowed into our rooms to unpack and prepare for the weekend. Within moments of arriving in our room, our plan to have a nice relaxed afternoon was dispelled by a panicked phone call to say that we were expected at the comp venue to register ASAP! The Kata categories would be competing that afternoon (prior to the course). There was a flurry of activity as bags were un-packed and repacked and we piled out of our room and headed for the car in an effort not to miss the beginning of the competition!!

‘Daisy’, - Sensei Dave’s trusty sat-nav, safely guided us through the streets of Blackpool to the Sports Centre (with the exception of trying to take us down a pedestrianised street). After having our trust in sat-nav’s shaken slightly, ‘Daisy’ fulfilled her role and we arrived at the steps of Blackpool Leisure Centre. Once the whole squad had assembled, we walked in together and made our way across the huge mat area to the spectator stands at the far side of the Dojo. Wakarishin’s cheering section set up ‘base camp’ and the squad changed as quickly as possible in preparation for the Kata categories and the International Course.

As the junior members of the squad demonstrated their Kata’s to the panel of Judges, it was then that I realised how well they conducted themselves that afternoon. Despite all the travelling and changing competition format, they seemed completely unfazed and gave a good account of themselves. Once all the Kata’s had been completed (thankfully with no incidents of Kama being launched at the Senior Judges…!) the course began. For some though this was a ‘bridge too far’, particularly for all the juniors who had just competed. I must admit I nearly followed when there was not enough room to train on the Black Belt mat. Thankfully a few of the senior Sensei’s spotted the problem and additional mats were laid. I am so glad that I stayed and ignored the tiredness, early start and travel. I had a brilliant course, and thoroughly enjoyed myself. After all, it would be a shame to travel all that distance and not experience as much as possible while we were there. Once the course finished, a few of us headed back to the hotel to ‘de-sweatify’, and search out a local restaurant to relax and replenish ourselves for the next day.

Saturday morning arrived, feeling relatively fresh (orange juice only the night before…honest). Unfortunately, we managed to miss breakfast! However, the staff took pity on us and provided plenty of cereal and toast (many thanks).

Daisy guided us perfectly to the Sports Centre (no quizzical looks from pedestrians this time – well done Daisy!), and we met up with the rest of the squad at the main reception. After a brief warm up we came together for our Squad Huddle, a few words were said by some of the members to make sure that we were all ready and prepared for the day. We had all spoken in training about what was required of us to raise the bar from 2008, and it always helps to have a short reminder at times like these when the nerves are jangling, and mouths are drying up.

The official opening ceremony started with the flags of the competing nations being walked into the dojo and placed in line beside a ‘lowered’ UNJJ flag, accompanied by each individual national anthem. As the competing flags entered in turn, I waited eagerly for our national anthem to start. As the Union Jack was walked in and the familiar drums started to roll for ‘God Save the Queen’ I grabbed as many squad members as possible and we lined up, arm in arm and began to sing. To say that the hairs on the back of my neck where not on end would have been an understatement. As we began the second verse I was aware that the crowd began to join with us, which just added to the whole experience. Once the Flag ceremony had been completed, we were treated to a demonstration of traditional Japanese Drums. The sound was incredible, and for those who weren’t in the correct mindset for the competition at the beginning this certainly they certainly were by the end.

The Black belt randoms got underway and the usual mixture of running around like a headless chicken (trying to uke for as many people as possible) ensued. When the time came for my first round, the engine had been successfully started. Thanks to some great ukeing from Dave, I finished up in the Bronze medal position.

My groundwork category would not be starting until late in the afternoon which gave me a great opportunity to support the rest of the squad.

One of my best memories of the day was watching Tony Castle take to the mat for the ‘Polar Bear’ category of sparring! One thing that puzzled me was the reason why Tony’s opponent took to the mat wearing Kendo armour? – didn’t know that Tony’s reputation was that daunting! Needless to say it was a great contest to witness. For those that do not know Tony, he has a very broad frame, and tonnes of strength. Not the sort of person you would expect to see with dazzling footwork, unleashing some very impressive kicking combo’s and yet there he was, landing some neat round-house/front kick combinations. Despite fighting like a lion, the judges ruled that his opponent was the victor. (Although it has to be said; that it was one of the loudest round of applause when Tony went up to collect his Silver medal later that afternoon).

Finally it was time for my groundwork round in the middle-weight division. I was on first and tried to gauge my opponent. He was a bit taller (not difficult as I’m not exactly a giant!), although I thought that I might have a weight advantage. We shook hands and knelt down ready to start. As soon as the referee gave the word, he was out of the blocks like a rocket and smashed me totally. Next thing I knew he was almost in the perfect scarf-hold position. For the next 15-20 seconds he began to attempt to detach my skull from my neck. I tried desperately to counter, and a series of popping sensations coming from my neck told me it was nearly time to tap out. I had one more attempt at countering and finally managed to snag one of his legs, and get my arm in a position to relieve a little pressure on my (now giraffe length) neck. The round finished and we had our breather. Throughout this time of kneeling I was continually moving and testing my neck to ensure I still had movement. I felt ok, and able to continue so when the referee gave the word I was ready to start. As we began I kept my guard slightly higher this time to try and block another swinging arm/shoulder. My opponent worked into a good mount position, but failed to get any successful technique. Not happy with Round 1’s attempt to rip my head off for a trophy and stick on his mantelpiece, he then slipped quickly into a scarf hold to have another go. This time I was ready and worked quickly into position where I could protect my neck/head, and attack for a side strangle. I successfully snagged his gi and began to exert pressure, all the time gradually building on this technique. As the strangle began to take effect he temporarily lost concentration and allowed me to escape and move into a full mount. As I finally got into my first good attacking position of both rounds, my peripheral vision picked up a dastardly bean-bag sliding it’s way across to the mat Judge to signify that time was up! I stood up and offered my hand out to my now spent opponent and picked him up to his feet. We embraced and shook hands. I had gone the distance, but I knew I had not done enough in my own opinion, let alone that of the judges to warrant a win. The inevitable decision was given and I duly shook my opponents hand again and congratulated him on a good win. It was a good learning experience, and I enjoyed the opportunity to take on someone outside of Wakarishin.

Once the last bout had finished, the mats were cleared and the podium erected ready for the medal ceremony to begin. We all gathered together and had a quick chance to share our experiences of the day, and congratulate those who we had seen finishing in a medal position. Many of us had taken part in the Kata from the previous day, and were keen to find out how we had faired in the eyes of the Judges. As the category winners were read out, it became apparent that we had had a successful couple of days at the UNJJ Competition. It was a very proud moment for all of us, and one of the best moments was getting the whole squad together with Sensei Ian and Sensei Wendy for our photos.

Once changed out of our gi’s Dave, John, Ben, Tony and I made our way back to our B and B to get ready for the evening of celebrations. After a quick shower and change we were in a taxi heading out to find the local curry house (to maintain tradition). Once finished we headed up the road to the main hotel where everyone was just finishing their meals and the party was just starting. As always it gave us a good opportunity to get to know some of our fellow competitors, and form new friendships.

Sunday morning arrived and with bleary eyes I finished the last of my packing. Ben awoke to find that he was missing some leg/body hair (which has mysteriously gone missing during the night?!?). Once downstairs we discovered that we had missed breakfast (again!), so a quick pit stop for food at the beginning of our return journey was very welcome.

Special thanks to Ben and Dave for all the driving you did (and good humour).

Through the whole year of competitions, that we have been lucky enough to attend, there are a number of things that have helped maintain us as a tight unit (on and off the mat). Firstly, a massive thank you to all Parents and Family who have supported us. If it wasn’t for you, most of the squad could not attend training sessions or competition(s). Your unconditional support for the whole squad (not just your child(ren) at these events has been superb, and made a real difference to us all.

Thank you to Pat for providing the squad training facilities (and torturing the senior squad members with the smell of lovely fresh coffee half way through every training session).

And of course a huge thank you to Sensei Ian. None of this would come together if it was not for your dedication, vision, encouragement, and continually keeping us all on our toes throughout training. Well done on coaching the squad through another successful year. The medal total for Team Wakarishin for 2009 was much higher than the previous year. An achievement we are all very proud of.

Sensei Gary Hewitt

Pictures From Blackpool

Blackpool pictures courtesy of Ben Freese




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