Overseas Trips
Malaysia Aikido Association’s 15th Anniversary
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2nd - 5th July 2009

by Instructor Colin Slider From 2nd to 5th July 2009 a group of 28 Shinju-kai members from both Singapore and Johor Bahru led by Philip Lee Sensei joined over 250 students from over 10 countries in attending the Malaysia Aikido Association’s 15th Anniversary Seminar in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The event coincided with MAA’s celebration of 10 years since Seiichi Sugano Shihan appointment as their Technical Advisor. As usual the MAA extended a warm and gracious welcome to all who attended. A total of 13 classes over the 4 days of training were led by Seiichi Sugano Shihan (8th Dan) and other guest instructors from the region including Takake Tsuboi Sensei (7th Dan), Hironobu Yamada Sensei (7th Dan), Ikuhiro Kubota Sensei (7th Dan), Masatoshi Imazaki Sensei (7th Dan), Etsuji Horii Sensei (7th Dan), Tony Smibert Sensei (6th Dan), Philip Lee Sensei (6th Dan) and George Lo Sensei (6th Dan). The training sessions were held at the Olympic Center of Malaysia, just a short walk from Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown district. The highlight of the event was undoubtedly the Anniversary Dinner on the evening of 4 July at which our hosts outdid themselves in their efforts to ensure everyone had a fantastic time and felt truly welcomed. Although it was a tiring few days of training (especially for some of our ‘third age’ students) it was truly enjoyable and we look forward to continuing our warm and friendly relationship with the MAA well into the future.