Announcements / News

On August 16th, San Mateo Kendo Dojo hosted our 36th Anniversary Taikai at Burlingame High School. It has been about ten years since we last hosted a tournament—longer than our usual five-year cycle, after the COVID pandemic made it impossible to hold one when the time came. We were grateful to welcome back friends from across Northern California for a full day of competition. Putting on a tournament takes a village. Members of our dojo, friends from other dojos, and community volunteers came together to prepare brackets, tape courts, staff tables, and keep everything running smoothly. We were especially moved that former members who once practiced with us, but stepped away as life took them elsewhere, came back to lend a hand. Thank you to everyone who helped make the day possible. Congratulations to all of the division winners: 10 & Under HSSK A. Yu 11–13 HSSK A. Yu 14–17 Oakland L. Chen Adult Kyu Sacramento H. Chu Open Women Oakland A. Arai Women Over 40 Sacramento S. Hashimoto 1–2 Dan San Jose A. Chien 3+ Dan Salinas M. Uto Seniors Palo Alto D. Shimizu Kantosho Youth Sacramento G. Ishida Kantosho Adult HSSK D. Hoyt And congratulations to our own Catherine, who placed 3rd in Open Women! Tournaments are a great way to test your skill. Practitioners of all levels are encouraged to compete—it is one of the best ways to see where you stand and what to work on next.

San Mateo Kendo Dojo is pleased to announce that Takahiro Yamaguchi has passed his 4th dan exam and joined our instructor team! Yamaguchi sensei has been a longtime member of our dojo. He helps manage our kendo equipment and often supports kendo demonstrations at local community events. Many of you have already seen him in action sharing kendo with the public. He is a strong and cheerful presence both on and off the floor, and outside of kendo he trains for marathons. Please join us in welcoming Yamaguchi sensei to the team!

This past Sunday we competed in the San Jose Kendo Tournament. Huge congratulations to our women's team, who brought home first place! The lineup was Carolyne Ikeda and Catherine Ikeda alongside Wang-san from Mt. View Kendo Dojo. We were also thrilled to have a few members who competed for the very first time. Stepping into tournament armor takes courage; we're proud of everyone who went out there and gave it their all. On to the next one!

On Saturday, March 28, the City of San Mateo held a cultural event at the Main Library for youth ambassadors from Toyonaka, Japan. San Mateo and Toyonaka have been sister cities since 1963. Mayor Adam Loraine and Councilmember Lisa Diaz Nash joined in welcoming the group. Yamaguchi-san gave a kendo demonstration as part of the cultural program.

Happy New Year! Today was our first practice of the year at our San Mateo location. As per tradition, Mrs. Konopka prepared her delicious sweet and savory ozoni soups for everyone. Thank you again, Mrs. Konopka, for your continued effort and generosity in keeping this wonderful tradition alive. We also had the pleasure of welcoming a special guest, Andy Lee sensei (5 Dan), who was once a member of San Mateo Kendo Dojo from as long as 25 years ago. After more than 10 years away, he returned to visit us. Thank you for paying us a visit, Lee sensei. It was a pleasure to do keiko with you and learn a bit more about the dojo's history.