In the Martial Arts World, tournaments and other types of competition representing Martial Arts can be a great thing for many of us who want to pursue the Martial Arts as a sport. You get recognition, and you would be loved and hated by fans. You get the rush of excitement, and competitions can draw an interest to people, especially those who want to break into the Martial Arts training. The next generation would be influenced by us in many types of systems. However, since the arrival of the Asian Martial Arts systems to the western world after World War II, competition had a dark side, where Martial Artists can break rules on purpose, do whatever it takes to win, taking the short cuts to achievement, heated real-life rivalries between people and dojos, pressure being put on students from tyrannical Instructors, and parents, whether or not trained in the Martial Arts push their children hard to win consistently. These incidences are not only in the Martial Arts world but it can happen in any sport, Hockey, Football, Baseball all across the board. If we do not control our barbaric nature it can be the poison in us all.
Since I have respect for the accomplishments of many Martial Art competitors, I would not mention any names. In the Canadian National Championships in Metro Toronto at the time of the Breaking division there was a black belt in Taekwondo who tried to break a bat with a round kick. It was my Sensei, his wife and Sensei Debbie Crispin judging that and the black belt competitor was competing against his own student. How the story goes, I didn’t see the whole drama of it though, was that after several attempts to break the bat, he got upset and threw his bat across the gym floor. The three judges deducted points for his bad attitude and made the young competitor win the breaking contest. At the end of that contest, the Instructor gave his student hell perhaps saying that how could that happen and “I’m a higher rank than you, and you don’t deserve it.” A black belt should always control his or her emotions when things don’t work out, it is a tournament, and it is not the be all and end all of things. You will live to fight another day. At times I have come up short, but I don’t get all bent out of shape about it thinking it is the end of the world. I try to improve my skills so I can get better. Another example of competitors losing their temper over something was at the recent tournament I had competed in Georgetown. In the weapons division, where a black belt in Chinese Boxing went up and did a staff kata, somewhere in the middle of his performance he dropped his staff on the ground. He was handicapped, having only one hand; he was doing well from the beginning. So at the end of his performance, he lost his temper and threw down his staff in front of me. You can never express your anger to the judges about these flaws, because that means you lose the fight all together. Always control your emotions.
I would discuss a story about tyrannical instructors being told to me by a student and friend, although I wouldn’t fully believe it until this day was that one Instructor she had trained under who is a 9th dan who operates a dojo in southwestern Ontario, who has a barbaric nature of forcing his students to compete and fight. This was a common thing in 30 to 40 years ago and there are many dojos that still operate that way. This Hanshi doesn’t grade students the traditional way. He gives away belt ranks to his students after they successfully compete in a tournament. If you don’t place in the top 3 in any division you will get your butt kicked in class. The story is hard for me to believe because I saw a couple of videos of him, watched an interview of him and seems to be a nice man and the comments I have read seemed like they love him, I am completely baffled by all this. I have been told that if you don’t like the atmosphere in the dojo, better leave it and find another one, and that is a fact. What possess these people to turn themselves and others into monsters, barbarians and do whatever it takes to win? Being over competitive is a poison, and it will be if you let it. It is an obsession in those types of competitors who devote themselves to only the sport aspect of the Martial Arts.
Most MMA competitors today are egotistical and lack sportsmanship, why, because they want public attention and want to strike fear into their opponent. Those people have no sense of discipline and it is downplaying thousands of years of tradition in sport Martial Arts. MMA wanted to almost be like pro wrestling where promoters are trying to publicize on a heated rivalry, where two fighters hate each others guts. So in other words, most of the fights being advertised have a story behind it, a build up coming into the fight being dated. Well skilled Martial Artists can have a bad attitude it can mostly come from their own teacher. The flaw that we have in the Martial Arts world is that we lack our mental side of our training. The mental aspects of our training which is studying the Martial Arts history, it roots, its lineage, meditation, self-control, building self-confidence, and having a positive attitude, in that way we can always be open minded. This goes all the way back to the birth of human civilization, in Africa.
The reason why our ancestors made Martial Arts (Montu Arts) a sport is to reduce bloodshed on the battlefield. Although not talked about much by African Historians, Africa did have its conflicts within. Instead of always just killing each other for power and land, they put the Marital Arts, the Montu Arts in a sporting event way before the Greeks, Romans and Japanese people ever thought of. The African people implemented rules and regulations and developed Montu Art sports such as Boxing, Nubian Wrestling and Pan Kau Ra Shen, which later came into Greece and called Boxing, Greco-Roman Wrestling and Pankration. The reason why we have Martial Arts sports right now is to avoid hurting someone on purpose or taking a life, we can settle this with our skills in the name of the Neter (God) of warfare Montu in the arena bound by rules to see who the better brother is, instead of solving our problems by spearing each other to death. This was an African concept in origin. What happens day to day up in Jane and Finch area, now that’s black on black crime. But back to cradle of human civilization, sport Martial Art was the alternative from warfare format of Martial Arts.
There are great competitors in any sport that fall from grace, hang with the wrong people and do bad things. There are competitors that do whatever it takes to be on top by not harming others, but harming themselves, with the possibility that it has an outside influence. I like watching the kata performances of the French Shotokan Karate practitioner Michel Milon. He had the hand speed and precise timing. Unfortunately, I heard the comments on youtube saying that he died from a drug overdose. It is true that Michel Milon died in his hotel room back in 2002, and he was 29 or 30 years old. It was confirmed that it was cocaine and steroid overdose. We got to use our common sense if we are to be role models to the Marital Arts community. I live a clean life because I teach children Martial Arts and set a positive standard. My mom instilled in me to treat your body as a temple. Never cheat yourself, never take shortcuts or else the grim reaper will take your life when it is your time, a steep price to pay.
In tournaments when it comes to kids, parents whether or not were involved in the Martial Arts be overprotective or push their children to succeed on the tournament circuit. Although I never thought of this, but one time at Ron Day Memorial tournament when I was judging a ring with my Sensei, he reminded me to make sure to point off to an angle properly to the person I want to score because the score keepers may score the point on the wrong person on my behalf, and then I can get some serious heat with a parent on that call. It can happen, so I was worried about parents coming up with complaints with a misperceived call. Even if I brought up an excuse to say that I am still inexperienced at this job, would not save me from being told off. There had been incidences where parents get involved. Most of them don’t understand that tournaments are supposed to be a fun event; it’s not about winning trophies. The highest goal to make your parents and your instructors proud is by trying your best 120%. Then work on improving yourself. XMA competitors are near and dear to me, I treat them like family as much as my fellow Traditionalists. These guys don’t get much respect from other Martial Artists who never trained nor cared about XMA. I like watching so many competitors and admire their athleticism and intensity. I remember getting a private message via youtube from a parent two years ago who is the mother of Tiffany Larsen, thanking me for posting many positive comments about her daughter, saying it means a lot to her. I also been contacted on youtube two years ago shortly after the death of David Carradine, that a parent who is a Martial Arts Legend and patriarch, Mr. Kenneth Huor. He thanked me for having the integrity to post positive comments about his kids, Brendon and Dayna Huor. These are true stories. I like watching performances of Becca Ross, every chance she gets she replies with a “thank you” to me for posting supportive comments. Amanda Chen thanked me on myspace for writing kind comments to her. These competitors can do whatever that makes them happy as long as it’s positive. These talented Martial Artists don’t have to stick around the competition circuit forever; they can take their talents elsewhere. Anyone can take their own path of Martial Arts no matter if it’s for sport, if it’s to learn self-defense, or if it’s to gain self-confidence, improve your health, and self-esteem. Young Martial Artists love the sport, Older Martial Artists love the old budo ways, the tradition. For me, I like the balance of everything in order to be a well-rounded, knowledgeable person, the embodiment of the Martial Arts, a scholar warrior, and a competitor. I like the old and new concepts of the Martial Arts, studying the science, the realistic combat, and learning the sport aspect of the Martial Arts. I have respect for the young energetic XMA performers, but at times I had a feeling that parents get too involved and push their kids to succeed. I remembered Mr. Huor telling me through youtube email, and this is a true story that he told me a year and a half ago, that a fellow tournament colleague of his son and daughter had implant gels, (like the ones for breast implants) for her heels, and she was 13 or 14 years of age, (although I’m not saying the name of that person) in order to spring higher and farther when doing aerial tricks in her forms. 13 years of age and had gone under the knife to improve her performance, me and Mr. Huor suspected it was more of the encouragement of her parents. You can cause harm to yourself when you be over competitive from outside influences no matter if it’s your relatives or peers because if you succumb to those outside influences you lack faith to believe in yourself. My Sensei says this to his students, and I will never forget those words, “Do your Karate training for you, not for me, and not for your peers, but for you.”
We Martial Artists have future generations that look up to us, we in the brotherhood of Martial Arts should clean up our act and have common sense. Going under the knife, putting something foreign to the body to enhance your skills, and disrespecting other competitors should be the last thing we ever wanted to do. These things make us completely stupid. The path of Martial Arts training is for us and it is not to try and impress other outside influences. Be true to yourself and believe in yourself through mind, body and spirit.
Hotep,
Jonathan
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