This is the sixth in a series of articles featuring the IGA Ken delegation to the 15th Hong Kong Open. This time we focus on the Men's 5-Man Team.
“we are the past, we are the present, we ARE the future. mirai.”
Team Mirai on paper is a far cry from last year’s Men’s 5-Man Team. No Japanese players, highest ranked player being 3-dan (in contrast to last year when the lowest rank was 3-dan), and with two rookies to international competition. However the younger members are hungry competitors, eager to make their mark in the 15th HK Open (and in the hotel buffets). And their captain has always been striving to make sure that this team gets their chance to show their stuff. In essence, this is the future of IGA-Ken. This is Mirai.
Let us get to know the team members better.
Senpo – Raffy Javier
Age: 24
Started Kendo: March 2012
Current Rank: 1-kyu
Occupation: Manager
Short Bio: Raffy is a manager at the Gaming Library. His hobbies are surfing the net and playing video games. He enjoys sci-fi, fantasy and action genre of all kinds of media. As a kendoka, he aims to be able to do beautiful kendo just like Igarashi-Sensei and all the other sensei he watches when he surfs the internet. Now if only he can overcome his innate laziness so that he can train to do that…
Jiho – Lyndon
Age: 29
Started Kendo: July 2012
Current Rank: 1-dan
Occupation: IT Security Analyst
Short Bio: Lyndon is a former child star in the 80’s, former matinee idol in the 90’s, and now a kendoka. And before we forget, also very, VERY humble.
Chuken – Dane R. Pio de Roda
Age: 23
Started Kendo: July 2013
Current Rank: 1-kyu
Occupation: Electronics Engineer
Short Bio: A martial artist who follows his dreams of being great in Kendo. Which is good, as long as he remembers to do the same when he’s awake.
Fukusho – Franco Carlos Liu
Age: 23
Started Kendo: 2010
Current Rank: 1-dan
Occupation: Medical student
Short Bio: Fort is currently in his third year of medical school at the University of the Philippines. He is currently an Integrated Clinical Clerk for the UP College of Medicine at the Philippine General Hospital. He has been with Iga Ken for 5 years and took his Shodan exam in 2013.
When he’s not doing kendo he likes to climb mountains, explore caves, swim in rivers, and fist fight with bears. His appetite for adventure is matched by his appetite for food: any food that will get him through “h-angry” times.
Taisho – Kristopher Inting
Age: 39
Started Kendo: July 2002
Current Rank: 3-dan
Occupation: Office Manager
Short Bio: One of the driving forces behind the scenes of IGA Ken, Kutch has dedicated the past few years to developing the Club. A series of injuries and health issues over the last two years have prevented him from training as much as he would like though. Having been relatively healthy for the past 5 months, he is on the come-back trail and hopes to inspire his team to do their best in the tournament. Does this “old man” still have what it takes to show them young whippersnappers what’s what? Let’s see.
The future of Iga Ken!