O-Sensei at 80 Video

[Jason Striker II]

1964, Tokyo O-Sensei Demo - the guy was 80!!!

And, BTW, if you think the Uke aren't putting up much resistance, remember they are around 1/3 his age and weigh at least 50 pounds more, in every case - and yet, O-Sensei's footwork/balance never slip! Check it out.

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTk1MzgyMjI0.html

 

[Jenna]

Maybe they are just taking pity upon him because he is an old guy? Some of those Aikido people are soft I hear.

 

[madeku]

some neat stuff. but some of it obviously for demonstration.. no disrespect intended, i love aikido, and understand a good many things we learn are exercises of movement.... but in this video half the time he's not even touching them and they start to ukemi. eg. 2:23, 3:38.. i have absolutely no doubts that O Sensei was a legitimate bad ***.. but some of this is laughable, not that i think anyone in their right mind would WANT to take an irimi nage from the man.

 

[Ichi01]

It's great to be able to see what real Grandmasters could do at their advanced age. O-Sensei is a true example of what martial arts can offer. None can deny the many years of practise and love he put in it. Respect

 

[Chris Li]

Here's an interesting quote by Yasuo Kobayashi about taking falls for Morihei Ueshiba:

Moderator: What did it feel like to grab O-Sensei's wrist?

Kobayashi: His body was highly conditioned. Everybody flew when they were taking ukemi, but that was because if you didn't fall you would have been slammed down. That gradually changed to jumping, and just showing the form of falling...

It wasn't like being thrown by a normal person, it felt as if you were sinking into the tatami. From that sharpness things mellowed over the years and come to be expressed in Kata. We who were there take ukemi based upon our experiences from that time, but those who have only seen the later form don't really understand. That in and of itself is a reason for the change.

From "Yasuo Kobayashi and Fumiko Nakayama on Living Aikido: Part 2".

Best,

Chris

 

[K-man]

Here's an interesting quote by Yasuo Kobayashi about taking falls for Morihei Ueshiba:

From "Yasuo Kobayashi and Fumiko Nakayama on Living Aikido: Part 2".

Chris, thank you for that article. It is a fascinating insight. :asian: