First International Feminine Online Aikido Seminar organized by our Colombian Member

”During last weekend, 25th and 26th of July 2020, the “first feminine international aikido seminar online” was held through Live Facebook on the Colombian Aikido Federation’s Facebook page (Federación Colombiana de Aikido FCA) in which I have the responsibility of being the President and the Technical Director.

For this activity, we counted the presence of female Aikido instructors and masters from a large part of Latin America: Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Mexico and, as a special guest, the Netherlands. This event became a point of reference not only for Akido in the world, but also for many different martial disciplines.

Besides having the endorsement from the International Aikido Federation (IAF) to whom I am profoundly grateful, we had also the endorsement from the Japanese Embassy, the sports and recreation institutes of Chia and Cajica, as well as from each of the federations from the participant countries registered to the IAF and others who are pending in being recognized by the Aikikai Foundation and the IAF. We have also had the participation of many countries from America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

The seminar begun on Saturday, July 25th, at 9 a.m. with the protocol greeting by the President of the Colombian Aikido Federation, the greeting of the Mayor from Cajica, the architect Fabio Ramírez, who also is an Aikido student, and the greeting of the Mayor from Chia, Luis Carlos Segura. Finally, we had the inauguration greeting from Kei Izawa, the Chairman of the International Aikido Federation.

Classes begun the same Saturday at 9:30 (Colombian time) and Argentina finished the Journey of the day, together with the intervention of the Chairman from the International Aikido Federation, Kei Izawa.

The next day, Sunday July 26th, the seminar continued with a class from Mexico at 9 a.m. and ended at 17:30 with the class and talk from Satomi Ishikawa Sensei from the Netherlands, Copresident of the IAF Gender Balance Working Group.

I wish to emphasize the impressing result of this seminar, to the date, Monday July 27th, in morning hours:

First feminine international aikido seminar online
From July the 19th to July the 24th (Invitation to the seminar)
Scope: 27.275 people
Interactions: 2.568

Saturday July the 25th
Scope: 60.253 people
Interactions: 14.462

Sunday July the 26th
Scope: 21.934 people
Interactions: 5.776

Monday July the 28th
Grand Total
Scope: 109.458 people
Interactions: 20.228

This numbers surpassed any expected forecast, which demonstrated the necessity of continuing with this activities, highlighting the great participation from families since Meyal Sensei from Mexico taught the class with her two nephews, Teresa Gaitan Sensei from Argentina taught the class with her husband, Andrea Jimenez Sempai form Colombia Taught the class with her mother, Liliana Gonzalez Sensei also from Colombia taught the class with her daughter, Nana Gonzalez Sensei from Venezuela taught the class with her husband and two kids, Maia Mendez Sensei from Chile with her daughter, Karen Leal Sensei with her husband etc. All of them serving as Uke. This is how it’s shown, how Aikido strengthen family bonds and despite of the difficulties caused by COVID 19, the practice of Aikido gain a great importance in the interaction and approaching of the families and although, for now online, it also brings closer the society in general, showing why Aikido was recognized by the UNESCO as the Art of Peace.

Kind regards,
Lic. Germán Santamaría”