“University of Queensland Judo Club”
Let me tell you the story of when I first arrived in Australia.
It was 1993, and I was 25 years old.
I had come all the way here with the ambition of opening a martial arts dojo in Australia and spreading Submission Arts Wrestling overseas, but I couldn’t speak English, I didn’t know anyone, and I didn’t have much money.
I got on a bus from Brisbane Airport and somehow made it to Brisbane City, where I found a cheap backpacker-style accommodation.
I was depressed because I couldn’t speak the language and struggled even to get from the airport to the city and find a place to stay, but I had no money and no one to rely on, so I didn’t have time to be depressed forever.
The next day, I immediately started taking action.
I thought that the first thing I needed to do was to show my martial arts skills and gain reputation.
The best way to do that was to practice with people who already practiced martial arts, show them my skills, and let them understand what S.A.W is.
There was no internet in those days, so there was no information at all, but I heard that there is a big university called University of Queensland (UQ) in Brisbane, so I thought there might be a martial arts club there, so I left the accommodation in the morning, but after getting on the wrong bus and getting off at the wrong place, it was already evening by the time I arrived at UQ.
Looking at the map on the large grounds of UQ, I found a place with martial arts gym written on it, and when I went there, there were signs recruiting students for various martial arts classes.
And while I was looking at it, someone said “Hello!!” in Japanese.
That person said he teaches Judo there, and his name was Phil Brain.
I found out later that he was a leading figure in the Australian judo world and the head coach of the UQ Judo Club.
Phil often travels to Japan for judo and work, and can speak a little Japanese, so I introduced myself right away and he asked me to show people what S.A.W was like in the judo class he teaches.
Luckily for me, he said there is a Judo class starts in half an hour, so I was guided into martial arts gym.
To be continued
