There are only a few direct O-Sensei disciples left alive and Yoshimitsu Yamada Sensei is one of them. He holds a rank of the 8 Dan in Aikikai and is a teacher with a name known all over the world. This is one reason he is so respected and demanded. A bigger reason is his high aikido skill, unique style and colossal contribution to the Aikido.
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Yoji Fujimoto (March 26, 1948 – February 20, 2012) was an 8 Dan Aikikai Shihan. At the age of 23, he moved to Italy and became a big part of the Aikido history in the country.
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Hiroshi Isoyama was born in 1937. In June 1949 he joined the Iwama Dojo to learn Aikido under the Morihei Ueshiba. Training under O-Sensei continued for around 20 years of his life and is the main part of Hiroshi Isoyama’s knowledge about the martial arts philosophy which he still transmits to the world.
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Philip Lee Shihan has a 7th Dan in Aikido Aikikai Shihan based in Singapore. He’s a founder of the Aikido Shinju-Kai organization which is the largest one in the territories of the Malaysian countries.
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Nobuo Takase is a 7th Dan Aikikai Shihan and a Technical Director of Aikido in New Zealand. He is a head-instructor in Aikido Shinryukan with headquarters in Auckland.
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Yukio Kawahara (August 14, 1940 – June 2, 2011) – was an 8 Dan Japanese Aikido Shihan and official representative of the Aikikai in Canada.
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Juba Nour has a 6 Dan in Aikikai and holds a status of a Shihan. He’s one of the first known uchi-deshi’s for Kazuo Chiba. A founder of the Baja Aikido on the beaches of Mexico and one of the Birankai’s heroes.
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Seigo Yamaguchi (April 13, 1924 – January 24, 1996) 9 Dan Aikido, Hombu Dojo Shihan and one of the most important, early teachers in Aikikai.
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Bjorn Eirik Olsen Shihan represents Norway Aikikai. He is presently holding a 7th Dan and is the Chief instructor of the Norwegian Aikido Federation. He holds seminars regularly in Greece, England, and has a close relationship to Aikido in Vietnam.
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Kenji Tomiki was born on March 15, 1900 in Kakunodate, Akita Prefecture. He began to learn under the Morihei Ueshiba in 1926 and was also a Jigoro Kano‘s student. He managed to get 8 Dan at Aikido in 1940 and 8 Dan at Judo in 1978. He taught both of them in Waseda University, Tokyo and this is when he started a development of his own Aikido theories which crossed with what Aikikai was about to become.
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Ichiro Shibata is a 7 Dan in Aikido Aikikai Japanese Shihan who relocated to the USA to become a chief instructor at the Berkeley Aikikai.
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