Kendo teacher Shozo Kato of N.Y. passes for 8th Dan

**judoist** · Posted On: 8/21/2010 9:12am

For those of you just tuning in, the 8th dan is the highest attainable rank/dan level attainable from the Zen Nihon Kendo Renmei (All Japan Kendo Federation). And the Big Apple is the home of one of only three people outside of Japan to recieve this rank.

http://shidogakuin.com/Kato_Hachidan...2010-05-24.pdf

Since the 8th dan test only has a pass rate of about 1%, it has a reputation of being the toughest test in Japan. It's held 2 times a year: in May in Kyoto and in November in Tokyo.

**JudOWNED** · Posted On: 8/21/2010 9:25am

Damn, no vid!?

**NeilG** · Posted On: 8/21/2010 1:48pm

Relatively old news - Kato-sensei passed his exam last May. He is actually the 2nd US citizen to pass the exam, Tagawa-sensei of Detroit passed a couple of years ago. Both men were born in Japan. AFAIK there is yet to be anyone who was not born in Japan to pass the exam.

If you're interested in the 8th dan test, there is a fascinating documentary available that you can see here.

**Lindz** · Posted On: 8/21/2010 2:38pm

Clearly Kendo Hachidan is srsly bizness. But I must admit I'm confused how there can be a test of technical proficiency so hard that a world champion in that activity can't pass it.

**NeilG** · Posted On: 8/21/2010 7:01pm

Watch the documentary - it explains it reasonably well.

**Lindz** · Posted On: 8/22/2010 12:48am

I did. That's where I gleaned that little fact from.

**mcjon** · Posted On: 8/22/2010 7:16am

Originally Posted by NeilG

If you're interested in the 8th dan test, there is a fascinating documentary available that you can see here.

Thanks for the link! That was an excellent documentary.

**mcjon** · Posted On: 8/22/2010 7:31am

Originally Posted by Lindz

Clearly Kendo Hachidan is srsly bizness. But I must admit I'm confused how there can be a test of technical proficiency so hard that a world champion in that activity can't pass it.

It actually makes a lot of sense, when you think about it. You could have a very gifted athlete who is able to beat people in sport competition that doesn't have a true understanding of the art.

Take Judo. I can imagine someone taking a Olympic level greco or freestyle wrestler, training them intensively for a year or two in just the top 5 judo competition throws and some matwork, and wind up with a serious international judo competitor. IIRC, Rhadi Ferguson suggested doing exactly that with a wrestler or even a football player.

Depending on their training regime and how gifted an athlete they were, I can imagine them actually winning national and international competition. Their "judo" might look like little more than freestyle or greco with a gi, but they could still win.

Now, even though that person is a national or international champion, are they really qualified to be a high dan instructor in Judo? I think not. Aside from the huge gap in general judo knowledge, their technique would probably be less an example of "perfect" judo and more an example of wrestling adapted to fit judo competition rules. In effect, while an art includes competition, the art itself is much more than just competition.

**Coach Josh** · Posted On: 8/22/2010 11:07am

This is why competitors can only achieve ranks of 4-6 dan in Judo after which you need to become an instructor or some form of contributor to the sport in order to achieve higher ranks.