“In 2023, I participated for the first time in the National Training of the Portuguese Kendo Federation. I was deeply impressed by the dedication and enthusiasm with which so many Portuguese practitioners dedicated themselves to training. After joining the Lisbon Kendo Club, I continued to feel touched by the commitment and seriousness of its members, which led me to decide to participate in training whenever my official duties allowed”, says Ambassador Makoto Ota, who on Friday, October 31st, did his last training in Portugal, as he will return to Japan.
“Throughout this time, I understood even more the strength of the members’ passion for kendo and the deep respect they have for Japan’s traditional martial arts. I feel like I gained true friends from Japan here in Portugal. I was also deeply moved and grateful for the farewell training specially organized on the occasion of my departure from Portugal. I sincerely hope that practitioners of kendo — and also of other Japanese martial arts, such as judo, karate and aikido — continue to be bridges of friendship, contributing to the strengthening of relations between Japan and Portugal”, adds the ambassador, who presented credentials to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on January 12, 2023.
That year marked the 480th anniversary of the arrival of the first Portuguese in Japan and in an interview published in DN shortly after taking office, Makoto Ota highlighted that “our meeting in 1543 is known to most Japanese people through school, and there is a lot of interest in Portugal”.
That year marked the 480th anniversary of the arrival of the first Portuguese in Japan and in an interview published in DN shortly after taking office, Makoto Ota highlighted that “our meeting in 1543 is known to most Japanese through school, and there is a lot of interest in Portugal”.
Now, about to leave Lisbon, the ambassador completes this farewell message, on the occasion of the final kendo training in Lisbon, saying that “During my stay in Portugal, I was struck by the great affection and affinity that many Portuguese people show for Japan. During this period, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro visited Japan, elevating bilateral relations to the level of Strategic Partnership. In the economic field, mutual investment between the two countries has been increasing, and we have managed to hold numerous events and shows dedicated to Japanese culture. I am convinced that these advances were possible thanks to the natural affinity between the people of our two countries — an affinity well represented by the dedicated practitioners of Japanese martial arts in Portugal.”
Two years ago, almost day by day, DN published an extensive report with the Japanese ambassador’s training at the Casal Vistoso Municipal Sports Complex. This Japanese martial art fascinates those who watch it, given all the aesthetics that surround it. Kendo is inspired by ancient samurai, and if metal katanas were replaced by bamboo ones, the demanding ethical code of ancient Japanese warriors was essentially passed on to today’s practitioners..
In this report, DN gave voice to some of the Portuguese practitioners who trained with the ambassador: “He put us completely at ease from the first moment. He said that he wasn’t an ambassador here, he was one of us”, said Luísa Lourenço, general secretary of the Lisbon Kendo Club and instructor. Miguel Godinho, Team Leader and also an instructor, also praised the diplomat’s enthusiasm for being able to train with Portuguese people. And André Lúcio, who had been practicing this martial art for nine years, confessed that he never thought he would have “the privilege of training with a high-level Japanese kendoka on a regular basis like now”.
I also quote here what Makoto Ota said two years ago about his connection to this Japanese martial art: “I started when I was around eight years old, when my parents encouraged me to practice kendo. Academic and professional commitments kept me away from kendo for a long time, but in recent years I have rediscovered its charm and resumed the practice. The ultimate goal of kendo is not to win, but to perfect a person’s character, starting and ending with courtesy, for example. I think it has something in common with the spirit of European knights“.
In a farewell ceremony at his official residence, days before this last training session, the ambassador read the entire speech in Portuguese, ending with the phrase “I hope to meet you again — in Portugal or Japan”.
The post Ambassador Ota’s Last Kendo Training in Lisbon appeared first on Veritas News.
