I have done a few threads about my experiences here in japan so some people might remember me.... if not in short I am an Australian 120kg division wrestler and scored a wrestling scholarship to Tokyo's Kokushikan University.
Anyway we all just got back from our super short summer holiday, and second day back we took a 4 hour bus trip to some big ass high mountains out somewhere to do a big training camp in the altitude. we are pretty much surrounded by ski feilds and are right in the clouds.
there are 6 of the top univrsities here and a bunch of highschool teams too....
plus 5 MMA fighters.... including Gomi and another dude who's name i keep forgetting, but he is fighting Gilbert Milendez on the same card as Gomi later this month. Also a guy caller Hiro who was living in Dallas for the last 5 years training with the Lions Den and Travis Lutter.. he speaks good english.
I spoke to Gomi and he wants me to join in their submission training after our evening wrestling training session.... that should be fun! I'm a pruple belt but have only been able to train subs about 4 times in the 5 months I have been here.... so I expect to be rusty..
Anyways I just thought i'd share that with the forum as I guess some people would find it interesting. Also i'll answer any questions that people might have.
Today's evening training was split up into freestyle and Greco at different times. So that when we finished freestyle training and wanted to do some subs, the Greco guys were just starting up and took up all the mat space.... so I will have to wait to have a roll.
I can take some half decent pictures and some lousy video on my phone... I'll see what I can do
As far as food goes. I am big into nutrition so althogh my schollarship covers food from the caffaeria, I pretty much just buy my own food and cook it myself.
Dunno where Aoki did Judo.... But Kokushikan is the number one Judo university in Japan. we have at least 2 current Olympic gold medalists training there, one who is 66kg and one who is 100kg And there is a monster of a 100 kg guy who is only 19 called Iishi, who actually beat the current Olympic gold medalist in the Japan Judo Nationals like 2 months ago.... so he is no doubt gonna be a star!
as for up and commers in Wrestling.... I really don't know allot of them by name, but there are some great guys! One guy from my team to look out for is Tsukasa Tsurumaki who is a 74kg Greco roman wrestler. I have no idea how he makes the weight, cos he walks around at about 84kg and is big and lean! he looks like death in the leadup to a big comp, but then he almost puts all his weight back on for the comp. Amazing!
antifret my school is called Kokushikan
If you are in Tokyo, there are many good wrestling universities that you could go and train with. just pick one that is closest to you I guess.... I imagine they are all quiet welcoming to visitors who wanna train, cosd that's the way it is at my uni, and we always go to other universities to train with their guys.
Navin R Johnson
As for how I was discovered.... well Australia has fuck all wrestling really.... there is not one highschool or university in the country that has a wrestlign team or anything like that. it only exists at the club level... just random clubs scattered around the country.... and we have minimul competitions too. So coaches don't really come out here to scout.... (the wrestling situation is getting better though)
Anyways I was doing Muay Thai, then got into BJJ and decided I wanted to do MMA.... so I started Wrestling. my club actually had a few good heavies including a 2 time olympian. So I was just training wrestling hard, but not really doing it to compete in wrestling. Then I met the coach of Kokushikan at the national Wrestling camp who was out here coaching and scouting a bit.... Me being 6'5" and an athletic 240lbs with good natural ability, he thought I could do well at his uni and hopefully make an Olympics.
So he said if I could learn enough Japanese to pass an entrance interview and test, that I could get a full ride schollarship to his uni.
That was all I needed to hear! I quit my job and started studying Japanese full time with a tutor..... and here I am.
BlackSheepBJJ Yeah I'm the same Denis who was there after ADCC.... did I meet you at Carlos' or at Travis lutter's gym?
I am fucking wasted from training, so i'm gona go have a nap, and hopefully write about the training here a little later.
hahaha reguarding my parents.... I often look at them and just can't believe I came from them. Both averaged size and not athletic at all..... especially my mum, god!.... what makes it weirder is that everyone in my family are total academic freaks! and I just like all things MMA related :)
I reckon one day some big dude with a McBain accent will turn up at our door, with some scrawny book nerd that was somehow switched with me when we were born..... it'd sure explain a lot! ;)