We conduct only one intake annually, during the month of August, via our Beginners' Course for most members. The Beginners' Course is not to be missed as the fundamentals are extremely crucial to every aspect of the training.
For experienced kendokas, please contact us directly via our email or members.
Any prior experience or level of fitness needed?
No. That is what trainings are for. Of course it would be a bonus to have them. ;)
Where can I sign up/join the mailing list?
A link will be provided near the Matriculation Fair period for the online sign-up form. Otherwise, do not hesitate to email us with any of your queries!
To join our 2011 intake, please leave your contact details at NUSKK Sign Up Form. The form will close on 22nd August after the commencement of the Beginner Course. Please email us directly after that! (:
Costs and Equipment
What are the costs involved?
Firstly, there are no course fees for kendo. There are club fees at $20 annually to maintain club resources however. For beginners, you are only required to purchase the attire (gi and hakama) and shinai. These will cost around $150 depending on the Japanese exchange rate.
For the bogu (armor), it is only used in Advanced Classes and you will only be asked to purchase it after the Beginner Course. It is estimated to cost about $500.
Where can I purchase my equipment?
For new members, your equipment will be provided by the club early into the Beginner Course. After which you will be able to place your orders via the club forum or through our QM, Shermaine. We will inform you when it is needed.
Training
How long is the Beginners' Course?
It will be held over 3-months from the start of the semester. You are expected to attend most, if not all, the training sessions conducted.
What is the attire for training?
Any comfortable sports attire will suffice at the start of the Beginner Course. After 1 month of training, the gi and hakama will be worn during training.
For Advanced Classes, the bogu is required along with the gi and hakama.
What if I am unable to attend the upcoming training?
Do inform us beforehand either via our email or the respective people in-charge.
What if there are timetable clashes with training slots?
Unfortunately, the training timings are fixed and there are no make-up classes involved. Do try to catch up in the subsequent trainings! It has happened to some of our seniors and it is possible to keep up. :)
Breathlessness, sore and tired limbs, blisters and an occasional bruises. These are all common side effects of tough kendo training. For a non Kendo practitioner, Kendo seems like a violent sport with the kendoka hammering their shinai on each other. Coupled with the strange screaming and shouting similar to that of a war cry, its not hard to see why non-practitioners would think so. The training in NUS however has led me to a different conclusion about kendo. In fact, to me kendo training is not only physically demanding, but also mentally taxing (sometimes more mental than physical). The training, tough as it might seem, is able to cultivate mental strength and focus within the practitioner and enforce character building. Here are some basic training exercises that we practise to hone our skills and push our limits.
Kihon
Kihon practice in kendo means the practice of basic strikes in kendo. In NUS, the practice involves performing cuts to the men (head), kote (forearm) and do (torso). These strikes are fundamental to all other techniques in Kendo. Therefore, the cuts are repeatedly practiced over and over again to achieve perfection (or at least try our best to achieve perfection)
Kirikaeshi
This is the most basic of all exercises. Its usually the first exercise that we do after the warmup exercises. Kirikaeshi combines the movement of the upper body and the lower body and emphasizes on one's ability to perform consecutive strikes to the opponent while keeping proper posture, correct distance and balance. Although it is a very basic exercise practiced in many dojos, kirikaeshi requires a lot of focus and coordination for practitioner and his partner.
Jigeiko
Also known as free sparring. This is usually left to the end of the training whereby we will put all that we have practiced earlier to the test. Jigeiko, however, is not simply about fighting your opponent. One has to overcome fear, doubt, hesitation, doubt and surprise to be able to fight effectively. Jigeiko is also used as training for shiai (tournament matches) whereby players usually play for 2 points.
Below is a video of the 52nd All Japan Kendo Championships Finals. (Just to show you how a match in Kendo is fought at a high level)
In my opinion, the values of kendo that I have learnt were far more important than the technical skills. Without these values, kendo might simply become just another sport rather than the budo that it really is.
-------- The NUS Kendo Club trains all year round every Mondays and Fridays, 6:30pm to 8:30pm at MPSH 6.
Feel free to contact us or simply leave a message on the tagboard to find out more on the training in NUS Kendo Club!
