Story by TK Gwin

On the 10th of May a group of over 30 swordsmen gathered at the Ducan Family YMCA in Arvada Colorado, for a Kendo tournament. The Adult Team Competition winners were:

First Place - Ito Dojo (Arvada): Brian Cooper (Denver), Kazunori Ishibashi (Boulder), and Thor Metzinger (Denver);

Second Place - Rocky Mountain Kendo Federation (Wyoming): Logan Brillard, Richard Coles, and Doug Benton;

Third Place - Open Team A: Michio Kajitani (CO), Davis Begay (NM), and An Giang (AK).

The Children's Individual Competition winners were all from Ito Dojo in Arvada:

First Place - Yuka Saito (10 yrs. old), Second Place - David Nelson (13), and Third Place - Yuki Saito (12).

Kendo, which literally translates into "The way of the sword", is fencing Japanese style. A bamboo stick made of four shoots lashed together with leather is used as the "foil", and fencers seek to hit each other on various parts of the body. Like European fencing, it evolved from very deadly sword fighting techniques and tactics.

The traditional Ito Kendo Dojo was started over 6 years ago by Yasuo Ishikawa sensei (teacher), a Kendo teacher originally from Hokkaido Japan. The Ito dojo was named in memory of Ishikawa sensei's first teacher, Tsutomo Ito. Ito sensei was a renowned swordsman and won the All Japan Kendo tournament in 1935 and was named one of the MVPs. Ito sensei would go on to have a prominent Kendo career to include teaching countless children and adults the art of Kendo.

In Japanese tradition, permission to name the Arvada dojo the Ito Dojo was given by Ito sensei's first son, Koetsu Ito. Koetsu Ito is also a Kendo teacher and a distinguished artist. The dojo has grown over the years to around 20 members. An important part of the practice of Kendo is team competition. Kendo competitions are limited in the U.S. and non-existent in Colorado. The 10th of May marked the inaugural "Ito Cup". To help the local Kendo group have a successful first meet, a contingent of Japanese traveled from Hokkaido Japan to Denver to take part in the event.

This group was made up of Mr. and Mrs. Ito, and three high ranking Kendo teachers who were students of Tsutomo Ito. This trip was such a high priority for Mr. Ito that just before his departure from Japan his mother was very ill and she and Mr. Ito agreed that even with her illness it was important for him to participate in this inaugural event. The day before the tournament Mr. Ito's mother slipped into a coma so Mr. and Mrs. Ito went back to Japan early but not until Mr. Ito watched the first tournament named in honor of father come to a successful end.

There were 9 individual matches in the children's division and 8 adult teams that competed. Teams came from Colorado, Arkansas, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Nebraska. The Ito dojo is hopeful that the Ito Cup will grow annually to become a national competition. Several participants will be representing the Southwest Kendo Iaido Federation at the All United States Kendo National Championships in Las Vegas on the 4th of July. Information about Kendo and the Ito dojo can be found on their web site denverkendo.com.