Kodokan seminar in Cebu

Taipei, Taiwan – I’m now several hundred kilometers north of Cebu in this capital city of Taiwan, but my thoughts have never been taken away from the sporting activities we can do this school break.

One of the things I’d definitely be doing here would be to check out what they have in terms of sports, but I’ve been here for just a few hours and have to beat my deadline, so I’ll stick to what’s happening at home.

On Monday, judokas from as far as Baguio in the north and Zamboanga in the south will gather in Cebu for a seminar to be conducted by instructors from the Kodokan Institute of Japan.

Kodokan is like the Mecca of judo and the instructors what we could learn from the instructors who would be coming over would really be worthwhile.

Lawyer Vicente ‘Vic’ E. Fernandez II, the president of the Philippine Amateur Judo Association (PAJA) Inc.-Cebu Chapter, said that aside from the seminar, the Kodokan instructors would also be conducting examinations for Shodan or first degree blackbelt.

 Vic has been keeping me updated on what is happening in the judo scene despite my injury-enforced absence.

I look forward to being at the audio visual room of the University of Cebu on Monday to Wednesday for the Kodokan seminar and hope to learn something even from the sidelines.

I’ll give you more information on this event when I get back home in a couple of days.

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Last week, it was announced that the 9th Island Tee of the Mactan Island Golf Club will be held on April 23 to 26 in time for the celebration of Kadaugan sa Mactan.

The tournament will still follow the member-guest format, but with this change in schedule, the organizers see something different from what they have offered in the past.

This includes the participation of some dignitaries, who would be coming over for the celebration of the victory of Rajah Lapu-Lapu over the Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan.

With this change in schedule, the plan to revive the Fiesta Islands Golf Tournament might have to be moved.

Cebu is already a popular golf destination, but there are still many things that we can do to promote it as such.

With dwindling income from tourists due to the global financial crisis, golf clubs have to be more creative in terms of drawing visitors.

Taking part in sports or simply watching an event is a popular reason for travel. We can bring in more visitors to Cebu if we all work together.

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MILESTONES: Belated birthday greetings go to my nephew Kyle Alexis Q. Unto, who turned a year older Wednesday and also to my former classmate Hazel Dia-Solon.

More power to both of you! (THE FREEMAN)