Sogo Budo

More awesomeness from the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar 🔥

What a beautiful Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Weekend.

Here is the first set of action photos from the many techniques we trained together:

Jujutsu armbars and leg locks. Karate punching and kicking. Sword work. Sutemi. And much more.

A weekend full of sincere practice, friendship, study, and respect for the legacy of Minoru Mochizuki Shihan.

We will share more photos soon.

Videos from the seminar will also be posted in our community group.

Join our community here:
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Thank you to everyone who trained, shared, helped, and made this weekend special 🙏

We're already looking forward to next year.

Day 2 of the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar is complete.

From 09:00 until 17:00, with only a short lunch break in between, the dojo was filled with hard work, focus, and genuine Budo spirit.

Under the leadership of Edgar Kruyning Sensei, the direct lineage of the Yoseikan tradition could be felt throughout the entire day.

Today’s training included an in-depth study of KEN-TAI-ICHI-NO-KATA, combined with all-round skill development across the Yoseikan curriculum. Long hours, intensive practice, and a strong, positive atmosphere defined the day.

We concluded the day with a meaningful moment.

On behalf of Sogo Budo International, Certificates of Recognition were presented to Javier and Miguel Sensei from Spain in appreciation of their loyalty, dedication, and many years of sincere effort toward our line through their study of Yoseikan under Edgar Kruyning Sensei.

It also marks an important step in their continued journey, offering them the opportunity to take Dan Gradings within Sogo Budo International, further develop within the direct Yoseikan line alongside their Nihon Tai-Jitsu work in Spain, and work toward obtaining official teaching licences 🙏

Today, is a special day.

Yesterday, the Friday session opened the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar in the right spirit.

Right now, the Saturday training part is a wrap.

People from different backgrounds, different countries and different Budo paths are training together with one purpose: to practise sincerely, to study deeply, and to keep the legacy alive.

The Yoseikan Legacy of Minoru Mochizuki Shihan that is.

Physically, Mochizuki left us 23 years ago. Mentally he is still with us.

Especially today, we practise with him in mind 🙏

What a FANTASTIC first day of the weekend seminar!

You can receive a certificate anywhere.

But that was never what I was looking for.

For me, grading has always been something between teacher and student. It is not only about receiving a paper. It's about who stands in front of you, what he represents, and which legacy you'll be part of.

As long as Minoru Mochizuki Shihan was alive, I wanted to train with him and his senior instructors: as close to the source as possible. To learn directly from him. To feel his Budo instead of only reading about it. And when the time came, to be graded by him as well.

This photo was taken in Japan, when Audrey and I received our Dan certification under Minoru Mochizuki.

For me, Mochizuki was the bridge between the founders of modern Budo, my generation, and the generations still to come.

That is an important part of the legacy.

A grade is not only about level. It reflects where you trained, who guided you, and which line you chose to stay connected to.

That is what we continue through Sogo Budo International.

We keep working in this line. We keep training, studying, questioning and passing it on, so that others can experience this Budo with a real connection to its source.

That is the purpose of the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar.

To honour those days, carry the responsibility, and bring people together to continue this line through sincere practice.

You’re most welcome to join us 29, 30 & 31 May at the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar 🙏

==> https://sogo-budo.com

Even at an advanced age, Minoru Mochizuki Shihan could still be found in the Dojo almost every day.

Think about that for a second.

Most people start Budo for self-defence. You want to protect yourself, move better, react faster. Nothing wrong with that.

But the longer you train, the more you realise Budo is much bigger.

Of course we want to keep training physically for as long as possible. Move, practise, fall, stand up, improve. That part matters.

But you're also building your knowledge and experience.

Mochizuki had that investigative mindset. Even when his body became weaker, his curiosity didn't. He gave advice whenever he could. He demonstrated whenever possible. And even when he could hardly move, he still had students experiment with new ideas — just to see if they'd work.

We train now not only to get better today. We train to fill our backpack with enough knowledge and experience to help others later.

Your training partners now. Your students later. And maybe one day — when your own body can no longer do everything it once could — you can still walk into the Dojo, enjoy Budo, share what you've learned, and help the next generation move forward.

We remember all his lessons during the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar. Join us 29, 30 and 31 May 2026 ad the Hombu Dojo, Ede, Netherlands?

Let's train, study, and keep that spirit alive 👊

Meet Mitsuhiro Sato sensei.

My longtime training partner from Japan and the current owner of the old Yoseikan Dojo, now known as Gakunan Dōjō.

Sato is an exceptionally skilled Judoka. During my years in Japan, we trained together extensively in the prison dojo. Those sessions were intense. Hard, honest, and direct.

Before that, he also trained Sumo and Kempo, so together we practised Nippon Kempo too. Years later, when Audrey fought her MMA match in Japan, Sato helped me coach her.

These days, he is also heavily involved in BJJ.

What I always respected about Sato is that he never limited himself to a single format. Judo, Aikido, Sumo, Kempo, MMA, BJJ — he keeps evolving, researching, and training. That open-minded budo spirit is deeply connected to the legacy of Minoru Mochizuki.

And that is exactly what brings us together during the Minoru Mochizuki Memorial Seminar.

Not just to practise techniques. But to keep alive a way of thinking, moving, and growing through Budo.

We're 9 days out. There's still time. Register here >> https://sogo-budo.com

When I lived in Japan as UCHI-DESHI, I not only lived with Minoru Mochizuki Shihan, but with his wife too, whom we addressed as Oku-san.

Every time I look at this photo, I think back to that moment with the master in the kitchen. And to the next day, when his wife took me to the market to teach me what I should buy in order to eat healthy.

What particularly touched me was that one evening, after a long day of hard training, master Mochizuki saw that I was not eating good and nutritious food. Actually, I got hit on the head by the master and to my surprise he went preparing a meal just for me, late in the evening. Because of my budget, I could only afford rice with an egg.

He had, of course, watched me for a while and was waiting for me that night. When I came upstairs, I plopped down on a chair that was in the kitchen. That was probably a fixed ritual that I wasn’t aware of. The kitchen was on the top floor and consisted of a long hallway. This kitchen was divided into two; a part for the master and his wife and a part for the resident students.

After fifteen minutes, when I had regained my senses and gathered strength to prepare my simple meal, the master came out of his room adjoining the kitchen. He beckoned me to make a healthy meal, officially together, but actually the master did everything himself. It was an unforgettable moment for me, especially when I think back on it now.

This taught me to look at Budo differently.

These lessons go far beyond technique. They live in the way a teacher sees you, corrects you, cares for you, and helps you grow as a person.

That is what brings us together at the Mochizuki Memorial Seminar.

Join us? Details are here: https://sogo-budo.com

As a live-in student, I trained every single day under the guidance of the active instructors Tezuka Sensei, Washizu Sensei and Kenmotsu Sensei, all under the leadership of Minoru Mochizuki Shihan.

This photo (I think ‘92) captures one of those moments.
I am working with Tezuka, while Kenmotsu and Minoru Mochizuki can be seen in the background.

When people think about martial arts history, they often think about famous names, books or demonstrations. But what stays with you most are the ordinary moments around training. The hours on the mat. The corrections. The atmosphere. The conversations after practice. The feeling of living inside a tradition instead of only visiting it.

Tezuka Sensei played a huge role during that time.
He was the leading instructor and someone I spent a lot of time with whenever I stayed in Japan. Strong, skilled and deeply committed to the art, but also approachable and generous with his knowledge. He represented the spirit of daily budo life in a way that is difficult to explain unless you have experienced it yourself.

Sadly, he passed away far too early.

Looking back at photographs like this reminds me how valuable those years truly were. At the time, you never realise that certain moments will later become memories you treasure for the rest of your life.

The Mochizuki Memorial Seminar is not only about techniques or lineage. It is about remembering the people who carried these traditions forward and honouring the spirit they left behind.

Join us at the Mochizuki Memorial Seminar?

Info & Tickets are here:
==> https://sogo-budo.com