The Kendo Student Club (KSC) of Chuo Gakuin University (CGU) of Tokyo, Japan, was invited for a friendly match with the KSCs of various universities in Taiwan at TKU Student Activity Center (SAC) on 8/3. At the opening, CGU captain thanked TKU on behalf of his 40 team members for this wonderful opportunity of exchanging Kendo skills with Taiwanese friends and being able to do that in a beautiful campus such as TKU. He also extended an invitation to the KSC of TKU for friendly competitions in Japan.

The KSC of CGU visits TKU regularly at a 3 to 4 years interval, and each time they bring some new, innovative skills with them. This year is no exception. They demonstrated a series of unique movements for warm-up excises in front of a crowd of participants, who came specifically to observe and learn from CGU. Thanks to CGU’s champion reputation, their arrival can always generate a huge crowd of spectators who come from both amateur and professional circles in Taiwan. With the filled room, the SAC looked suddenly more like a carnival party rather than a competition ground.

At the match, CGU surpassed all the challengers that included the KSCs of National Tawain University, National Ching-hwa University, and National Chiao-Tung University, highlighting their superior techniques and amazing concentration. Both qualities inspired everyone around them. Wang Chao-ming, the Chair of TKU Kendo Student Club, a sophomore of the Department of English, was one of those that was inspired and in awe of them. He believes the opportunity of witnessing an entirely different way of practicing Kendo and combating skills will help him improve his. ( ~Ying-hsueh Hu )