What is the All Japan Kendo Championship?

The All Japan Kendo Championships (hosted by the All Japan Kendo Federation ) decides the best kendo player in Japan

This is a tournament to determine the best male kendo player in Japan.

This highly anticipated tournament is held every year at the Nippon Budokan, a venue that kendo practitioners aspire to attend.

It is broadcast on NHK. The winner is awarded the Emperor's Cup, making it the most prestigious kendo tournament. The tournament is conducted in a solemn manner, and competitors are expected to not only demonstrate strength, but also to display good manners in accordance with the spirit of martial arts.

High-level matches will be played by representative players who have passed the rigorous qualifying rounds in each prefecture.

Eligibility

The winners of the qualifying tournaments held by each prefectural kendo federation will be able to participate in the All Japan Kendo Championships.

However, the runners-up from Hokkaido, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Shizuoka, Aichi, and Hyogo prefectures, the runners-up and third place winners from Chiba, Osaka, Saitama, and Fukuoka prefectures, and the runners-up, third place winners, and fourth place winners from Tokyo are also eligible to compete. A total of 64 contestants will compete to determine the number one in Japan.

Previously, there were also restrictions on rank.
From the 32nd tournament in 1998, eligibility was limited to those with 6th dan or above.
From the 38th tournament in 1990, the requirements were relaxed to 5th dan and above.
After that, from the 43rd tournament in 1995, rank restrictions were abolished and anyone over the age of 20 who won the qualifying tournament could participate.
Did you know that the conditions for participation have changed in this way?

List of past winners

1st (1953)

Name: Sakakibara Rank: Renshi Prefecture: Aichi Prefecture Occupation: Legal Instructor, Nagoya Correctional District Age: 33 Number of victories: 1

2nd (1954)
Name: Yuichiro Konishi Rank: Renshi Prefecture: Fukuoka Prefecture Occupation: Nishi-Nippon Railroad Age: 32 Number of wins: 1

3rd (1955)
Name: Taro Nakamura Rank: Kyoshi Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Police officer Age: 33 Number of wins: 1

4th (1956)
Name: Haruo Asakawa Rank: Kyoshi Prefecture: Gifu Prefecture Occupation: -
Age: 37 Number of wins: 1

5th (1957)
Name: Nobutaka Morita Rank: Kyoshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Nagasaki Prefecture Occupation: Mitsubishi Mining Co. employee Age: 39 Number of wins: 1

6th (1958)
Name: Moriharu Suzuki Rank: Kyoshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Aichi Prefecture Occupation: Tax office employee Age: 38 Number of wins: 1

7th (1959)
Name: Taro Nakamura Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 37 Number of victories: 2

8th (1960)
Name: Tetsuaki Kuwahara Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Miyazaki Prefecture Occupation: Asahi Kasei Corporation employee Age: 21 Number of wins: 1

9th (1961)
Name: Iho Kiyoji Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Teacher at Tokyo Metropolitan Chitose High School Age: 41 Number of wins: 1

10th (1962)
Name: Tadao Toda Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Shiga Prefecture Occupation: Toyo Rayon employee Age: 23 Number of wins: 1

11th (1963)
Name: Taro Yano Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Hyogo Prefecture Occupation: Hyogo Prefectural Police Officer Age: 40 Number of victories: 1

12th (1964)
Name: Tadao Toda Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Shiga Prefecture Occupation: Toyo Rayon employee Age: 25 Number of wins: 1

13th (1965)
Name: Yasuhiro Nishiyama Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 29 Number of victories: 1

14th (1966)
Name: Jin Chiba Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 22 Number of victories: 1

15th (1967)
Name: Kunihiro Hotta Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Hyogo Prefecture Occupation: Hyogo Prefectural Police Officer Age: 41 Number of victories: 1

16th (1968)
Name: Shohei Yamazaki Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Niigata Prefecture Occupation: Niigata City Hall employee Age: 45 Number of wins: 1

17th (1969)
Name: Jin Chiba Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 25 Number of victories: 2

18th (1970)
Name: Takeshi Nakamura Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 29 Number of victories: 1

19th (1971)
Name: Tetsuo Kawazoe Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: 4th year student at Kokushikan University Age: 21 Number of wins: 1

20th (1972)
Name: Jin Chiba Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 28 Number of victories: 3

21st (1973)
Name: Hironori Yamada Rank: Renshi 5th Dan Prefecture: Kumamoto Prefecture Occupation: Kumamoto Prefectural Police Officer Age: 25 Number of victories: 1

22nd (1974)
Name: Eiji Yokoo Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Wakayama Prefecture Occupation: Wakayama Prefectural Board of Education employee Age: 24 Number of wins: 1

23rd (1975)
Name: Tetsuo Kawazoe Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Kochi Prefecture Occupation: Kochi Gakugei High School teacher Age: 25 Number of wins: 2

24th (1976)
Name: Kojiro Migita Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Kumamoto Prefecture Occupation: Teacher Age: 23 Number of wins: 1

25th (1977)
Name: Isao Ogawa Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

26th (1978)
Name: Ishibashi Masahisa Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Fukuoka Prefecture Occupation: Fukuoka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 27 Number of victories: 1

27th (1979)
Name: Sueno Sakae 2nd Dan Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kagoshima Prefecture Occupation: Kagoshima Prefectural Police Officer Age: 30 Number of victories: 1

28th (1980)
Name: Mitsutoshi Toyama Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Miyazaki Prefecture Occupation: Teacher at Nichisho Gakuen High School Age: 26 Number of wins: 1

29th (1981)
Name: Shuji Nakata Rank: Kyoshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

30th (1982)
Name: Kenichi Ishida Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 33 Number of victories: 1

31st (1983)
Name: Azuma Ichiro Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Aichi Prefecture Occupation: Aichi Prefectural Police Officer Age: 33 Number of victories: 1

32nd (1984)
Name: Tetsuo Harada

Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kyoto Prefecture Occupation: Kyoto Prefectural Police Officer Age: 31 Number of victories: 1

33rd (1985)
Name: Ishizuka Yoshifumi Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

34th (1986)
Name: Toru Iwahori Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

35th (1987)
Name: Kiyonori Nishikawa Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

36th (1988)
Name: Akira Hayashi Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Hokkaido Occupation: Hokkaido Kendo Federation Secretary Age: 30 Number of victories: 1

37th (1989)
Name: Kiyonori Nishikawa Rank: Renshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 2

38th (1990)
Name: Masahiro Miyazaki Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 27 Number of victories: 1

39th (1991)
Name: Miyazaki Masahiro Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 28 Number of victories: 2

40th (1992)
Name: Toshiya Ishida Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 31 Number of victories: 1

41st (1993)
Name: Miyazaki Masahiro Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 30 Number of victories: 3

42nd (1994)
Name: Kiyonori Nishikawa Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 39 Number of victories: 3

43rd (1995)
Name: Toshiya Ishida Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 2

44th (1996)
Name: Miyazaki Masahiro Rank: Renshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 33 Number of victories: 4

45th (1997)
Name: Miyazaki Fumihiro Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

46th (1998)
Name: Miyazaki Masahiro Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 35 Number of victories: 5

47th (1999)
Name: Masahiro Miyazaki Rank: Kyoshi 7th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 36 Number of victories: 6

48th (2000)
Name: Naoki Eika Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Hokkaido Occupation: Hokkaido Police Officer Age: 33 Number of victories: 1

49th (2001)
Name: Hidenori Iwasa Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 31 Number of victories: 1

50th (2002)
Name: Ando Kaiyu Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Aichi Prefecture Occupation: Aichi Prefectural Police Officer Age: 29 Number of victories: 1

51st (2003)
Name: Takumi Chikamoto Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Aichi Prefecture Occupation: Aichi Prefectural Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

52nd (2004)
Name: Tsuyoshi Suzuki Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Chiba Prefecture Occupation: Chiba Prefectural Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

53rd (2005)
Name: Satoru Harada Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

54th (2006)
Name: Ryo Uchimura Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 26 Number of victories: 1

55th (2007)
Name: Masashi Teramoto Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 32 Number of victories: 1

56th (2008)
Name: Masayo Kenji Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 27 Number of victories: 1

57th (2009)
Name: Ryo Uchimura Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 29 Number of wins: 2

58th (2010)
Name: Susumu Takanabe Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

59th (2011)
Name: Susumu Takanabe Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 35 Number of victories: 2

60th (2012)
Name: Kiwada Daiki Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Osaka Prefecture Occupation: Osaka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 34 Number of victories: 1

61st (2013)
Name: Ryo Uchimura 1st Dan Rank: Renshi 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Officer Age: 33 Number of victories: 3

62nd (2014)
Name: Yuya Takenouchi Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Fukuoka Prefecture Occupation: 3rd year student at University of Tsukuba Age: 21 Number of wins: 1

63rd (2015)
Name: Hidehisa Nishimura Rank: 5th Dan Occupation: Kumamoto Prefectural Police Officer Age: 26 Number of victories: 1

64th (2016)
Name: Katsumi Yosuke Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Kanagawa Prefecture Occupation: Kanagawa Prefectural Police Officer Age: 30 Number of victories: 1

65th (2017)
Name: Hidehisa Nishimura Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Kumamoto Prefecture Occupation: Kumamoto Prefectural Police Officer Age: 28 Number of victories: 2

66th (2018)
Name: Hidehisa Nishimura Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Kumamoto Prefecture Occupation: Kumamoto Prefectural Police Officer Age: 29 Number of victories: 3

67th (2019)
Name: Rentaro Kunitomo Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Fukuoka Prefecture Occupation: Fukuoka Prefectural Police Officer Age: 29 Number of victories: 1

68th (2020)
Name: Kenshiro Matsuzaki Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Ibaraki Prefecture Occupation: 4th year student at University of Tsukuba Age: 22 Number of wins: 1

69th (2021)
Name: Keita Hoshiko Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Kagoshima Prefecture Occupation: -
Age: 23 Number of wins: 1

70th (2022)
Name: Murakami Tetsuhiko Rank: 5th Dan Prefecture: Ehime Prefecture Occupation: Ehime Prefectural Police Officer Age: 30 Number of victories: 1

71st (2023)
Name: Natsumeda Ryusuke Rank: 4th Dan Prefecture: Hiroshima Prefecture Occupation: Hiroshima Prefectural Police Officer Age: 23 Number of victories: 1

72nd (2024)
full name: Yuya Takenouchi Rank: 6th Dan Prefecture: Tokyo Occupation: Metropolitan Police Department Age: 31 Number of wins: 2

There are surprisingly few opportunities to look back on past winners and other prize winners.

I would like to keep a record of these teachers, as I want to learn about their history and the great achievements they have made.