We were very happy to welcome Caroline Smith to the Dojo on Saturday morning. After a 5am departure and a long drive she seemed unreasonably fresh, as club members struggled in for an ‘early’ 10am start. Ouch!
And incredibly we finally hit the magic figure of 20 people in the Dojo – amazing 🎉
After a nice warmup and a chance to enjoy Caroline’s flowing style the grading started. Quite a crowded grading with 5 students plus ukes. Despite some nerves, all were well prepared. Watching all candidates do Shiko so effortlessly is quite astonishing when thinking back. Regular practice makes even the hardest things achievable. It was great to see Mayela confidently doing techniques that were impossible 6 months ago. Martin and Anna maintained composure and all techniques were clearly correct. Of course I hardly need to mention that Grace had no problem with anything, having hardly missed a single class since starting Aikido! It seemed too quickly the 6thkyu examination was over and it was time for Charlie to shine in her demonstration of extra proficiency for 5thkyu. Again, not a problem! As always ending the exam with Suwariwaza kokyu-ho – again all solidly correct. A pleasure to observe! 😊
Caroline offered congratulations to all and finished the class with some more nice flowing techniques and the event was over almost before it began. Enough time for a photo opportunity for the whole gathering and the students with Caroline. Finally to the café where Caroline handled the signing of the books and was bombarded with questions.
Congratulations to all 5 of our students who put so much time and effort in and thanks to all members of the club for supporting.
The club is only as strong as its membership 👍
Next grading in Oxford will be in the autumn …will you be ready?? Download the syllabus here