In 2017, Jowash Saballero’s path in kendo began when he met Takeyasu Onose Sensei, a Roku-dan (6th Dan) from Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Onose Sensei, a frequent visitor to the Philippines through OISCA’s cultural exchange program, introduced kendo training at the SHISEIKAN Dojo. Drawn to the discipline and philosophy of Japanese swordsmanship, Jowash became one of his earliest students and, in 2018, founded the OISCA Negros Kendo Club under his mentor's guidance.

The Shiseikan Dojo stands as a beacon of traditional Japanese kendo in Negros, with its foundation deeply tied to the contributions of Onose Takeyasu Sensei, whose influence has shaped the kendo of Negros Island over the years.

Congratulations to Philippines Team A for winning the 5man Event Champions of the 20th Hong Kong Kendo Open Championship! In addition, Shingaki Keitai Sensei won a Fighting Spirit Award! Congratulations to the Coaches of Team Philippines!

We are pleased to announce the Philippine delegation set to compete at the prestigious 19th World Kendo Championships (WKC) happening in Milan, Italy this 4-7 July 2024.

Last week (Mar 14 to 17), the UKFP was very lucky to have hosted two visitors from Japan, Kamei Toru Sensei (8Dan Hanshi) and Sanada Kazuaki Sensei (7Dan). They were originally here just for a vacation, but on the request of one of our locally based sensei they graciously agreed to have keiko with us and conduct a seminar.

We will be welcoming many guests from outside of Metro Manila during the 5th PNKT next month. To help you find a place to stay during the event, we are suggesting the following nearby hotels and lodging options:

It is our pleasure to announce that we will be holding the 5th Philippine National Kendo Tournament (PNKT) in October this year.

The UKFP will be holding a series of Gasshuku (Training Camps) in order to help prepare the Philippine Kendo Team Training Pool to participate in the World Kendo Championships next year in Milan, Italy. While the main focus of these Gasshuku will be the Training Pool members, any and all kendoka who want to improve their shiai/competition skills are invited to attend these camps.

The 1st Mindanao Regional Kendo Shinsa (official Kendo grading) happened last Sunday, April 2, 2023! First of all we would like to congratulate all those who earned their kyu and dan grades!

The UKFP BOT has made updates on the health and safety guidelines in response to the current COVID-19 situation. These guidelines are based on the current recommendations put out by various Philippine government agencies, and also based on the experience of practicing kendo over the past year (when practices officially opened).

We are very happy to announce that the UKFP has a new member club, the Tiger Kendo Club (TKC)! They are the first and (currently) only Kendo Club in Central Luzon, based out of Angeles City, Pampanga. TKC is a very motivated group, with lots of plans to help spread and develop Kendo in the Central Luzon region. We are very excited to have them in the UKFP, and we look forward to working with them in the years to come.

Last Saturday, Jan 28, 2023, the La Herencia Davao Compound in Davao City (the home dojo of the Davao Kenyukai Kendo Club) was the host of the inaugural Apo Cup. This is a kendo tournament that pit teams of three in friendly competition against one another. This was also the first UKFP sanctioned tournament since 2019.