Breaking News !!

Aikido Commission presents results

Paris. A long-awaited press conference took place this morning in the press center of the FFFAAFF, which is the umbrella organization of the three largest French aikido associations FFFF, AAA and FAFA. In addition to numerous journalists, official representatives of the KNK, the KNKAI, the KNKI and the KNKMu were also invited, as well as 52 other independent styles of Aikido. Observers from KNKHa and Kyodotai were connected online.
The results of a commission made up of the best Aikido masters from all over Europe, which had spent two years intensively dealing with the future of Aikido, were presented. The project was financed by the two largest international charitable foundations. The idea for this came from the group of Young World Leaders at the summit in Davos.
In the opening speech the Σ Foundation representative mentioned Aikido's ability to soothe the crowds. During the helicopter flight from the hotel to the press center, he had seen the protesting masses (against the pension reform) in the streets, which were jeopardizing the necessary growth of the GNI.
The representative of the GA Foundation spun this thread further and hoped for the meditation in Aikido, which would promote insight into absolutely necessary measures. This is particularly helpful with regard to the next pandemic and the ongoing climate change.

The commission then presented its results.
Four essential subject areas were dealt with.

1. Marketing and Organization

As a measure for better market penetration, the development of Aikido into an Olympic sport is proposed. There will be two forms of competition: Kumite with protective gear and Taigi Performance. Competitions promote the uniform development of Aikido. On the one hand through the uniform competition rules and on the other hand because the winners have a significant influence on the forms practiced.
There is a fully developed organizational concept for the hierarchical structuring of responsibilities and the state-recognized formation and licensing of teachers and competition judges.

2. Digitization

To objectify the practise, smartwatches should be used by everyone. A test run is already underway with an app that not only records body temperature, heartbeat and breathing rate, etc., but can also completely register body movements. Since judging the quality of Taigi performance by a stop watch in the 1980s, this is the first revolutionary step to a standardization of Aikido techniques.
The recorded data will be evaluated by an AI and will in future be accessible to licensed dojo leaders who pay a monthly subscription. The proceeds will be used to finance the sending of Aikido teachers to the Third World.

3. Virtualization

A project for the use of virtual reality glasses is being started in selected dojos. While other martial arts have been working with it for a long time, there is a large technological gap in Aikido. Among other things, the costs and the CO2 footprint for stationary dojos and for trips to seminars or meditation exercises in areas remote from civilization should be avoided. In particular, the user experience in Aikido is to be intensified in order to achieve higher market shares. This should also improve online teaching.
The proposal is based, among other things, on the realization that hitoriwaza is the highest technical form of aikido, but that an increase in performance should be possible with virtual worlds. Voluntary participants in this project will be rewarded with the next Dan degree.
In a consistent continuation of the tradition, the use of VR glasses is only the logical adaptation of Aikido to modern warfare. After the failed attempts with laser swords in Italy in the early 2000s, the days of playing with wooden swords should finally be over.

4. Chipping

Another proposal deals with the use of the health chip, which will be mandatory for all newborns from 2035. An aikido module is to be developed, which should initially optimize the feedback with the smartwatch and the VR glasses. Later, the perception will be optimized via the chip.
Total perception should be possible for everyone.
A few decades ago, highly qualified masters had given up aikido because they did not find the enlightenment they had hoped for. Therefore, an app is to be developed that can trigger this enlightenment, similar to how Ueshiba Morihei experienced it. In the basic version, the choice between a gold-colored and a purple-colored illumination will be possible. Further settings are to be developed by the international community.

The representatives of the funding foundations welcomed these groundbreaking results. As a thank you, the leaders of the individual working groups receive vouchers for a four-week vacation, either in the Seychelles, the Maldives or in the Dominican Republic.

The leader (m/f/d) of the commission receives a flight to the dark side of the moon.

  • The German sports minister tweeted shortly after the press conference:
    Fantastic! Aikido becomes Olympic.
    I promise, there will be no speed limit for the Aikido techniques.
    Wooden swords will still be allowed after 2035 if made from e-wood!

  • A winner of the four-week vacation tweeted that she would rather go to Japan.

April 1, 2023


Text by Bernhard Boll