Yamada Senta Sensei Introduced Tomiki Aikido to the UK in the late 1950s - London Aikido Dojo.

[@MarkARhodie]

My dad trained with him when he came across. Yamada Senta Sensei was also black belt in judo.

[@wakefieldturner5592]

Yamada was at the Skenfrith Spring School back in the nineties, He must have been in his seventies/eighties and looked like a very small old man, but he was very fast and very strong. I went to grab him and before I knew it I was sailing through the air, it was like something out of a cartoon. All respect for the guy, he was the real deal.

[@BrendanRoganArts]

Taekwondo and Hapkido, great combination= you learn to use your opponents' force against themselves.

[@RandAlthor939]

It's hard to believe these guys are masters ...it's even worse if you watch footage of kenji tomiki just awful .. Yet I was very impressed when yamada sensei taught at the renzu Kwai. .. tomiki aikido practiced properly is the best aikido for real defence ... as you learn to grapple counter and move .. The only thing is no one teaches it for what it could be .. everyone teaches the pointless toshu randori or even worse tanto randori. .. Wake up tomiki people. . Look at the Base you have ..throw in strikes , kicks groundwork ..you have a great way of realistically sparring with aikido. .. we did and I still do ..

[@rattytattyratnett]

Tomiki Aikido was developed as a sport rather than the esoteric style, hense the randori where points are scored and why Tomiki called it sport Aikido. The official JAA Shodokan Aikido is continually developing and is very diffently to the older style. Yes you could add a grappling etc, but that is not what the style is about. If you add more strikes and grappling, then you either go back to aikijitsu, jujitsu or MMA. You could say similar about boxing, but if you add grappling then you have a different sport.

[@towag]

Ian, I always said you can't get through to an illusion or the delusion of people who want to wholeheartedly believe this... Its why I left Tomiki aikido in 1993 because of the factors you quite legitimately criticise today's Tomiki aikido with... The politics, the ridiculous "grab a dildo" practice and all the other airy-fairy things that have crept in over the years and the fact that it's gone too far the other way!! Just like the traditional conveyor belt Aikikai "aikido" health system!! Tomiki and Ohba had it, but every one after that certainly didn't get it!!... Except maybe a very few ... Tomiki's biggest mistake was being forced to make it into a restricted sport, and I suspect he probably regretted it too!! But there you go, the politics and ownership (and of course the money!!) of the system has destroyed any chance of it getting into the Olympics... Sad, but I bet you it's true!! From what I can gather, popularity here in the UK has dwindled to point that just the people who want to go to a social club, who are fat, lazy, unconditioned and wear a gi like a sack of shit practice now!!.... It makes me want to cry!!....

[@Trgvo]

Robotic Aikido