Modeled after the Japanese “Kagami Biraki” ceremony, the Neandertal Kyudo Club’s New Year’s archery event took place last Saturday in the gymnasium at the high school in Alt-Erkrath. This marked the start of the 2019 training cycle.

Nineteen archers from various clubs in North Rhine-Westphalia, a guest from Frankfurt, and several spectators first watched the opening ceremony led by the coach and club president, who, dressed in a kimono and in a strictly formal manner, landed two arrows in the center of the target—which was about the size of a beer coaster. Afterward, each participant shot their two arrows with full energy and focus, aiming for success in the new year. This concluded the official portion of the event.

Then the atmosphere became more relaxed; the archers were cheered on, the results were loudly discussed, and the target games had begun.For the Mato-Asobi, there were now small, large, colorful, round, and square targets, some painted with characters or images of the “Earth Pig”—the zodiac sign of the year that had begun the previous week. There were 11 different targets in total; the last one was not hit. This was a moving target—a funny “lucky pig”—that could only be shot at within a narrow corridor. So there was no “suckling pig.”

Nevertheless, all the guests were well fed. The club had provided cold and hot drinks, sandwiches, Japanese rice dishes, and cake. During the breaks, everyone could refuel for free. The excuse “I couldn’t hit the target because I was hungry” didn’t fly.

Second through fourth place were separated by just one point. The guest from Frankfurt won by a narrow margin and received a handmade and hand-painted teacup with a bamboo pattern and green accents.

Anyone interested in this traditional art of archery can find more information online on our website at www.kyudo-nandertal.de. Our next event open to the public is the Rheingoldtaikai on March 30, 2019, in the gymnasium of the Gymnasium am Neandertal. Both an individual champion and the best team will be determined there. Spectators are warmly welcome.

Automatically translated by DeepL