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International President Tetsundo Tanabe
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I believe that this sport essentially does not require referees.
If players would recognize the results of the game, frankly admit to being hit and defeated, and refreshingly admire each other, there is no need to be concerned with the results of the game.
That is to say "self judgement". This is the judgement by the players towards themselves for their own sake.
And then, in the spirit, it breeds that one can be considerate towards one's opponent, and that one can accept other people.
Selfawareness depends on the understanding of the importance of honesty.
All the people in the world would like to promote mutual understanding as fast as possible. We are trying sincerely to achieve this.
By overcoming ethnic barriers and breaking the thick wall of racial color, people in the world are trying to create the mind of the World Citizen. Japanese are also participating in the process. |
| 1996.1.1 by Tetsundo Tanabe |
| Propagating and Promoting of New Sports Project |
We are trying for the harmony of the world through Sport Chanbara.
-International Sports Chanbara Association- |
Providing a program of New Sports which all people can enjoy is the project for the organization of recreations from now on.
An attractive innovation is needed for people who are not good at sports and also those who don't like them.
This case is the outline for the propagation of the sport. A pleasant event of Chanbara can be turned into a sport which anyone was playing it in one's childhood.
If a program like this were to be introduced into regional activities, it is certain that many people would take notice of it.
It is a great discovery for us that Chanbara has crossed borders into foreign countries and the number of playing members is increasing.
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Sports Chanbara, called by it's nickname "Spochan", was born when a pamphlet was published in 1971(Showa 46) by Tetsundo Tanabe: the originator and current president.
The theme of the pamphlet was The techniques developed essentially from self-defense.
The disciples were reared. And after two years, in 1973 the All Japan Goshindo Federation was inaugurated.
Small scale competitions were held and informative activities were carried out.
Now, the number of playing members has reached three hundred thousand, officially recognized instructors are about four thousand.
Sports Chanbara is being coached from Hokkaido to Kokinawa.
Each association in various areas is becoming increasingly competent and holding their own competitions. |
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In foreign countries, the number of playing members have increased year by year.
In America, France, Australia, Egypt, Italy, Taiwan, Singapore, Ukraine, Latvia, Germany, England, Korea, Russia, Egypt, many competitions have been held.
Propagating activities are making steady progress. And The All Japan Championship, the big event of the Association has been held thirty years and The World Championship in Japan has been held around August for the last seventeen years.
A junior high school student has also won the Championship in the past.
This sport is interesting in the fact that adults do not necessarily win the game. |
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| What is Sportschanbara which the Tetsundo Tanabe fathered ? |
As mentioned before the originator of Sports Chanbara is president Tanabe, an instructor of the art of self-defense.
It was the beginning that Mr.Tanabe noticed not the restricted sports but the Chanbara Playing holding sticks and running about the precincts of shrines and the fields, mountains wildly and freely.
He developed new tools and rules, And then Sports Chanbara became a modern sport.
By doing this he placed Sports Chanbara on the stage of Sports World as a modern Chanbara Playing conducted on a safe and fair basis in gymnasiums.
The weapons are soft sticks named air soft swords. Contents in that is air existing all over the world.
With the introduction of these weapons people all over the world are now able to play on common ground.
Before the invention of air soft weapons players could not compete on a fair basis with the earlier sponge swords varying in consistency and material in the various countries and districts.
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The items mentioned above are concerning with fighting in the tournaments as a single person.
There are various different ways to play Sports Chanbara.
For example: Taisen is the way of fighting one on one
Ransen puts a group of players against another group that comprise of a different number of players, such as a few players against one
Kassen (team-match) is the fighting which the two teams are the same in number such as thirty against thirty or fifty against fifty, this form was called Ikusa, a common way of fighting in old days.
In the case of a difference in the ability level and physique of players such as the case of adults against juveniles, playing can be conducted with the unequal length Emono(swords).
For example, in the case of Kodachi(60cm) against Choken(100cm) with handicaps, the difference is overcome.
To take the extreme in the case of a battle between the World Champion and three or four children with Choken, the children are sometimes victorious.
Running about gymnasiums, grounds, fields and hills with playmates in Kassen and Ransen (team match) shy and weak children (izimerarekko) can have enough exercise and get rid of everyday stress in a single stroke.
Through Sports Chanbara we are able to make friends with foreigners, breaking the language barriers between them and us using the "air-soft" sword. Spochan Playing like "Balloon Breaking Game" (the game of breaking a balloon placed on the head protector) is useful to help mutual affinity between teachers and pupils, parents and children. And so Spochan Playing can create friendship.
Events for the handicapped are held in many places and give them rehabilitation's training and the chance to have communication with those not handicapped. We are promoting Sports Chanbara so that instructors and players in various situations may make good use of Spochan according to each one's situation.
And we are promoting Sports Chanbara so that all the people may enjoy themselves naturally in a very relaxed atmosphere disregarding the differences in physique and age of young and old, men and women.
Abilities in spirit and physical strength of Spochan extend to the various aspects and we are sure that the fighting spirit can be developed naturally in a very relaxed atmosphere disregarding the differences in the ability level and physique. |
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The big event for the Sports Chanbara Association is The World Championships toward the harmony of the world and has been held twenty-five times.
These are the factors of World Chanbara Playing so that many men and women from many countries may develop international links and friendships by overcoming racial barriers and breaking the wall of the color.
The World Championships are held around every November in Japan, Japan in memory of the fact that president Tanabe originated Spochan in Yokohama. |
| The slogan is |
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We are sure that many people from many countries take part in raising the level of human relations under the slogan "THE HARMONY OF THE WORLD", the theme of Spochan.
In the world, there are various sports which are the prides of the culture that each nation has cultivated.
We are participating in a process to accept our mutual culture and pursue mutual understanding and a global mind.
No longer can we Japanese think of ourselves only as Japanese.
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Evaluation of the Project |
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For the part twenty years, various accidents have occurred because of the incomplete weapons.
There were solid wicks (polyvinyl, plastic) in the center of the old soft swords and due to frequent using, the soft material wrapping about the center, was gradually worn away. As a result occasionally the solid center directly hit the fingers and sometimes the head.
To prevent these accidents, we saw to it that both users and managers were obliged to check the weapons 2 or 3 times for safety, just before losing their safety, the solid center of the swords was able to be touched from the outside.
One was obliged to replace the old soft material with a new one.
(obligation to use the safe regular tools for the players, responsibility to manage the safety was the instructor's job and obligation to check the safety was for the sponsors of events and the referees at the tournaments.)
But the number of the players increased and the tools were reinforced with irregular materials. Thus the state of affairs had exceeded the capacity to be checked by the Association.
Therefore, to overcome this problem "air-soft" as mentioned before were developed to be made under the banner of "safety and fairness".
Spochan was established as a healthy sport in name and reality.
I'm sure that men and women, young and old, all over the world can play safely and fairly in the true sense of the word.
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The Sports Chanbara Association has been a member of the Japan Recreation Association since 1995. The Kumamoto Competition in 1995 was a very significant competition, watched by Mikasonomiya Her Imperial Highness, a president of Japan Recreation Association as this was held with the All Japan Recreation Competition at the time.
Because of this it is a competition worthy of mention in the history of Sports Chanbara Association. I thank the Japan Recreation Association and the persons concerned very much.
Besides The World Championship the events that the headquarters of Association have charge of are The All Japan Championship, The All Japan Boys and Girls Championship, The All Japan junior and high school students Championship and The All Japan students Championship.
These have all been held thirty-two times.
Not only competitions but also training courses for instructors and referees have been held. About eighteen hundred official referees including many women have been initiated.
Once twenty years old, anyone can apply to be a referee.
The pass mark in both the practical skills and academic tests, is 80.
However, because it guides politely to the beginner, too, the successful candidates are 100%.
This Chanbara Playing from Japan has become a sport and I'm convinced that this sport will be useful for the harmony of the world by becoming a true global sport.
From now on, I would like to use my conviction to push forward with many activities.
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