German Championships in Japanese Archery in Hanover
Runner-up Title for Reinhard Kollotzek of the Neandertal/Erkrath Kyudo Club

On June 22 and 23, 2019, the German Kyudo Championships took place in Hanover. The best individual archers and the best teams were determined in four disciplines. In total, over 100 participant slots were filled.

Before the start of the championship, the honorary president of the DKyuB, Feliks Hoff (Kyoshi 6th Dan), performed a “Yawatashi” ritual. This “Yawatashi” ritual inspects the shooting range and declares it ready for competition. Fifty years ago, Hoff attended the first Kyudo training course in Hamburg, founded the first club there, and thus laid the groundwork for organized Japanese archery in Germany.

The targets symbolize the breastplate of samurai armor and are positioned 28 meters away, just above the ground. This was the combat distance for archers, given the overlapping ranges of swords, halberds, and lances.

The first competition was the “Sempai” Championship. This is the highest performance class in Germany, comprising all archers who hold at least a 5th dan (master’s rank). Twelve archers competed. What makes this competition unique is that, after a preliminary round, only those archers who achieve a minimum number of hits advance. They then compete shot by shot for the victory. This is reminiscent of the origins of this art of archery. In military conflicts, only the archer who hit the target won.

Two archers dominated the preliminary round: Shigeyasu Kameo (Kyoshi 6th Dan) from Waldniel (NW) and Reinhard Kollotzek (5th Dan) from the Neandertal Kyudo Club (NW). Only these two advanced to the final round to compete for first place. Since Shigeyasu hit the target and Reinhard missed an arrow, Reinhard had to settle for the title of “runner-up.”
Third place was determined among the 10 remaining archers using the “Enkin” method, meaning the winner is the one who hits the center of the target most precisely. That was Michael Lehmann (HE).

This was followed by the competition for archers holding 1st–4th Dan (master level). Thirty-three archers participated. In this round, the first four arrows were subject to a style evaluation to determine which archer shot with the best technique and the most elegant form. Nadine Wolfsteiner (BY) won the style award.
However, the score was the deciding factor for advancing to the final round. Sixteen archers advanced to the final round. Simon Grunert (BE) shot a flawless round and took first place. Three archers had to compete in a tiebreaker for the remaining spots. Steff Kommnick (HH) hit the center more accurately and took second place, while Larissa Merkel (BE) took third.

On the second day, the competition opened with a special ceremony called “Hitotsu mato za sharei.” Three archers took turns shooting at a single mato. Feliks Hoff (Kyoshi 6th Dan), Shigeasu Kameo (Kyoshi 6th Dan), and Sven Zimmermann (Renshi 6th Dan) demonstrated, with technical and aesthetic perfection, what Kyudo looks like at its best. Here, hitting the target is a given. Added to this is the coordinated, harmonious sequence of movements by the group, which reflects the highest level of concentration.
As the arrow is released, it becomes clear that it is not only the body that shoots, but the mind also plays a major role. This significant mental influence has also led to Kyudo being associated with Zen.

A total of 9 teams, comprising 34 participants, sought to emulate this example. Each federal state was allowed to send one team consisting of three archers and one reserve archer. In this competition, only hits were counted. After a total of 48 shots per team, the winner was determined.
In the final of the four rounds, all but one of the arrows from the VfL Wolfsburg (NI) team hit the target; they took first place, followed by Alsterdojo (HH) and the team from BW after a tiebreaker with HE.

Next, the archers without a Dan rank competed in the Kyu Championship. Twenty-five “students” took on the challenge. To ensure technically correct shooting, there was a preliminary round with a style evaluation; only the 16 archers with the highest scores advanced. Franziska Wilhelm (BE) and Fritz Klein (BW) tied for the style award with identical scores. In the subsequent tournament, any archer who missed a target was eliminated. After another 6 arrows, Michael Mücke (SH) took first place, while Uwe Teine (BW) and Jochen Wille (SH) secured second and third place, respectively.

We would like to take this opportunity to extend a special thank you to the organizer, the referees, and the many volunteers who contributed to a successful anniversary competition.

Automatically translated by DeepL