Travels with the Prime Minister – The Island
MORE JUDO FIGHTING
By Dr. Chandana (Chandi) Jayawardena DPhil
President – Chandi J. Associates Inc. Consulting, Canada
Founder & Administrator – World Hospitality Discussion board
chandij@sympatico.ca
… Persevering with from final week’s column: ‘Judo Combating in India’.
After I travelled to India as a member of the Nationwide Judo Workforce of Sri Lanka in 1982, I loved completely different experiences of practice journey and enjoyable interactions in Madras, Sonipat, Ghaziabad and Delhi. After the primary match in Ghaziabad, the 10-member first-ever nationwide Judo staff of Sri Lanka, assumed that the combating portion of the journey was over. We had been fortunately planning to spend a number of days sightseeing in Delhi and its suburbs earlier than returning residence.
Transient Connections with Taj and Oberoi
In 1982, the biggest resort in Sri Lanka was managed by an Indian firm – Oberoi. Taj lodges owned by India’s largest conglomerate – Tata Group, was constructing a five-star resort in Colombo. After the Judo match in Ghaziabad, I deliberate to go to the well-known Taj Palace Resort and The Oberoi in New Delhi, in addition to the Oberoi Faculty of Resort Administration. Sadly, as a consequence of a last-minute change within the staff’s journey plans, I didn’t get a possibility to see these Iconic lodges managed by the 2 best-known Indian resort corporations.
In later years, I labored for each of those Indian resort corporations. From 1983 to 1985, I labored part-time at two Taj properties in London – Baily’s Resort and Bombay Brasserie, which was ranked as one of the best Indian restaurant within the UK when it was opened in 1982. It paved the best way for Indian and Bombay delicacies in London.
In 1989, I used to be recruited for the publish of Meals & Beverage Supervisor of the Resort Babylon Oberoi in Iraq. In that place, I did my second journey to India. I managed 10 meals and beverage retailers within the coronary heart of Baghdad. My staff of Indian managers and cooks additionally opened and operated an Indian restaurant. Most of my staff of restaurant managers had been graduates of the Oberoi Faculty of Resort Administration. My experiences in India throughout the Judo journey in 1982, offered me with a superb understanding of the Indian tradition, which was useful to me once I labored for Taj and Oberoi.
Extra Fights and Enjoyable in Hyderabad
Quickly after the match in Ghaziabad, the Judo Affiliation of Hyderabad invited us to a particular Judo meet of their regional, military headquarters. When our staff supervisor requested, “What number of hours will it take for us to journey from Delhi to Hyderabad?”, the Indian judoka who was initiating the extra meet stated, “It is vitally shut… solely 26 hours, by practice!”. After a fast chat amongst our staff, we determined to just accept the invitation to go to Hyderabad to compete and discover.
We had been dissatisfied to listen to from an indignant trying railway cashier at a practice station in Delhi that the subsequent practice to Hyderabad was full. Our new Indian good friend from Hyderabad advised Upali, “No drawback. Let me converse with this indignant cashier and resolve this difficulty, amicably.” After a quick chat he had with the cashier, he returned with 11 practice tickets with confirmed seat numbers. We had been shocked and joyful. “How did you do it? Upali requested. “Only a small bribe of 15 rupees, solely!” our good friend stated. Once we had been entering into our compartment within the practice, that cashier, now with an enormous smile stated, “Take pleasure in your journey!”
The practice journey was in lots of facets just like our earlier marathon practice journey of 52 hours from Madras to New Delhi. We handed some stunning, lush mountainous areas, in between largely scorching and dry areas. Hyderabad is a singular metropolis. It’s the capital and the biggest metropolis of the Indian state of Telangana, in addition to, the capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies a big space on the Deccan Plateau alongside the banks of the Musi River, within the higher a part of South India.
A lot of Hyderabad is located on hilly terrain round synthetic lakes. Hyderabad is the sixth most populous metropolis in India. In 1982 it had a inhabitants of over three million (in 2022 grown to over ten million). We had been accommodated in a military camp in Hyderabad. They organized a superb Judo meet. Resulting from accidents, our staff supervisor, Upali Sahabandu determined to compete within the staff class. He fought arduous in a lengthen bout, and our hosts had been impressed. In the course of the awards ceremony Upali was given a particular award for his combating spirit! All of us lined as much as obtain our medals, which adopted with a ceremony of tea service with wonderful staff from close by estates.
We additionally liked the meals in Hyderabad. From the time Hyderabad was conquered by the Mughals within the 1630s, Mughlai culinary traditions blended with the native traditions to create a singular Hyderabadi delicacies. This included Biriyani dishes extremely in style in Sri Lanka. The day after the Judo meet, once we went on a sightseeing tour, we took half in one other kind of ceremony. It was a saree shopping for ceremony within the metropolis. Some members of our staff needed to purchase sarees for his or her moms, sisters, and wives. Whereas Upali and some within the staff confirmed some experience about sarees, most of us had been tired of purchasing.
Tiruchirappalli, our final cease in India
After one other lengthy (over 21 hour) practice journey we reached our final station – Tiruchirappalli (additionally referred to as Trichy), which is an historic metropolis in India’s southern Tamil Nadu State. It was a comparatively smaller metropolis with a inhabitants of 600,000 in 1982 (doubled by the yr 2022). It’s identified for the sacred Hindu websites, Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple with intricately carved gopurams (towering gateways) and the Jambukeswarar-Akilandeswari Temple, devoted to the God Shiva.
In Trichy, we visited a number of historic websites. Probably the most spectacular was Tiruchirappalli Rockfort, which towers over town centre. It’s a historic fortification and temple advanced constructed on an historic rock. The identify ‘Rockfort’ comes from frequent, army fortification constructed there over the centuries by the Indian kings, and later by the British Colonisers. The oldest construction within the fort is an historic cave temple.
After a fast flight from Trichy to Colombo, we arrived on the Katunayake Worldwide Airport to obtain a hero’s welcome with garlands. Because the first-ever match tour out of the country by the nationwide Judo staff of Sri Lanka, these two weeks in 1982, that we spent in India, had been really memorable.
Members of the primary Nationwide Judo Workforce, 40 years later
Lately, I checked the place they’re now and was saddened to find that three members of Sri Lanka nationwide Judo staff in 1982 have handed away. I’m joyful to notice that 4 of the staff are nonetheless very a lot lively within the sport of Judo. 4 of the staff additionally served the Sri Lanka Judo Affiliation because the President.
= Upali Sahabandu (Workforce Supervisor) – fifth Dan Black Belt. Handed away throughout lively service as a Deputy Inspector Normal of Sri Lanka Police.
= Kithsiri De Zoysa (Captain) – Now a 4th Dan Black Belt. President of the Jujitsu Federation Lanka. A number one referee for various martial artwork sports activities.
= Raja Fernando – Now a sixth Dan Crimson and White Belt, and the highest-ranking Sri Lankan Judoka. Instructs Judo in Sweden.
= Hemakumar Jinadasa – Now a fifth Dan Black Belt, and the highest-ranking Judoka in Sri Lanka. Instructs Judo at Colombo YMCA and plenty of different Judo golf equipment.
= W. Okay. Godwin – Now a 4th Dan Black Belt. Retired an Assistant Superintendent of Police, however continues because the Head Judo Coach of the Sri Lanka Police Drive.
= Gamini Nanayakkara – fifth Dan Black Belt. Handed away throughout lively service as a Lieutenant Colonel of the Sri Lankan Military.
= Gamini Rupasinghe – Now a third Dan Black Belt. Lives in Australia.
= Okay. Navarathnam – Now a third Dan Black Belt.
= D. H. Ranjith – Now a 2nd Dan Black Belt.
= M. F. M. Izamudeen – Now a 2nd Dan Black Belt.
= T. B. Koswatte – 1st Dan Black Belt. Handed away.
= Chandana Jayawardena – Retired from Judo in 1983 as a 1st Kyu Brown Belt, to deal with his world profession in hospitality.
Extra Success on the Judo Mat
After I returned to Sri Lanka, I centered on passing Judo grade exams. Often, Judokas confronted one promotion take a look at at a time. In my case, as I had an extended lapse of ten years for the reason that final grade promotion take a look at, I used to be allowed to face three grading exams on someday in 1983. Having represented Sri Lanka was a bonus. I used to be awarded the brown belt first Kyu. Based mostly on the syllabus ready by Kodokan in Japan, a primary kyu Judoka ought to have mastered 45 completely different facets comparable to hand throws, hip throws, foot throws, holds, locks and chokes. Probably the most troublesome half was to recollect Japanese phrases for all 45 gadgets (coated in 5 grade promotion exams).
My purpose after that was to face the grading take a look at for first dan black belt, as quickly as potential. Resulting from my shifting to the UK in 1983, for graduate research in worldwide resort administration, I positioned that aim on a again burner. Sadly, I failed to search out time to face anymore Judo grading exams. Within the late 1980, once I labored in Colombo for 3 years because the Director of Meals & Beverage of a five-star Le Meridien resort, I used to be capable of finding time just for an occasional apply session on the Colombo YMCA.
My Ultimate Judo Struggle in 1993
One of many songs I wrote in 1993 with an Indian Bangaram tune – ‘Health Fever’ grew to become very fashionable. I used to be in a position to prepare twenty high western musicians of Sri Lanka to sing this track. It topped The Island pop charts for 3 weeks. Inspired with the success of the track, I made a decision to direct a music video for it, which was filmed on the Ramada Renaissance resort in Colombo. I included a Judo combating scene on this video. I used to be one of many fighters for a number of takes of the Judo combating scene. That was my final Judo battle.
I didn’t have any extra Judo fights after that. Nonetheless, I practised Karate for a brief time frame within the mid-Nineteen Nineties in Jamaica. My purpose then was to encourage my elder son, Marlon, who commenced Karate when he was ten years previous. I used to be so happy with Marlon when he earned his Karate Black Belt in Sri Lanka when he was solely 15 years previous.
A Tribute to the Pioneers of Judo in Ceylon/Sri Lanka
To conclude my collection of three articles on Judo, I want to pay tribute to some pioneers of Judo, a sport that was launched to Ceylon round 1953. A widely known Ceylonese palaeontologist, zoologist, educator and artist, Paulus Edward Pieris Deraniyagala grew to become the founding President of the Novice Judo Affiliation of Ceylon in 1953. He held that place for 19 years. Having studied in three of one of the best universities on this planet (Cambridge, Oxford and Harvard) he grew to become the Director of the Nationwide Museum of Ceylon. He was captivated with Judo.
Till the mid-Nineteen Sixties, there was no formal grading system for Judo in Ceylon. After I commenced Judo in 1970, along with P. E. P. Deraniyagala, there have been three different leaders of the game in Ceylon. They had been, Lincoln Wijesinghe – the primary Ceylonese to earn a Judo Black belt from Kodokan in Japan, Grasp Malcolm Atapattu – YMCA Judo Teacher and Grasp M. N. Tennakoon – YMBA Judo Teacher. Resulting from their dedication for Judo and arduous work, Kodokan in Japan, selected Ceylon as a vacation spot with a superb potential for the game.
These pioneers, with the assistance from younger Judokas comparable to Peter Dharmaratne, Nihal Gooneratne and Asoka Jayawardana, developed methods in selling Judo in colleges and carnivals. Japanese Judo academics who had been stationed in Sri Lanka – Sensei Yoda and Sensei Sato, helped by setting a excessive customary for Judo in Sri Lanka.Management of the Novice Judo Affiliation of Ceylon (re-named because the Sri Lanka Judo Affiliation in 1974) throughout the first 50+ years was offered by 9 Judokas with numerous backgrounds, together with a zoologist, a chief justice, two senior law enforcement officials, a senior military officer and a hotelier.
I used to be lucky to be included as a member of the nationwide Judo staff of Sri Lanka in 1982. At the moment, there have been solely about 150 Judokas within the nation belonging to simply eight Judo golf equipment. These golf equipment had been, Colombo YMBA, Colombo YMCA, Dehiwela YMBA, Dehiwela YMCA Gampola Judo Membership, Military, Navy and Police. In that context, the expansion of Judo in Sri Lanka over the past 4 a long time has been phenomenal.
Immediately there are round 15,000 Judokas (one third of this within the Military) in round 70 Judo golf equipment in Sri Lanka. Immediately, there are round 300 Kodokan black belts and one other 70 domestically graded, black belts in Sri Lanka. Progress by 100 instances inside 40 years, is certainly an ideal success story for any sport. I’m happy with my former Judo colleagues, for his or her superb dedication and their love for this sport. Properly accomplished!
