Aikido Now

It's already been ten years since my friend and teacher Alan Ruddock passed away. He pioneered the practice of both Karate and Aikido in Ireland and he was among the handful of westerners who studied under Ueshiba Morihei in the 60's, along with people such as Terry Dobson, Virginia Mayhew, or Henry Kono. Needless to say that he was one of the people who inspired me to relocate to Japan to study Aikido.
You can read an interview I did with him here: https://guillaumeerard.com/aikido/interviews/interview-with-alan-ruddock-the-first-irish-aikido-practitioner/
I also wrote a biography of Alan for BUDO JAPAN https://budojapan.com/aikido/20220117ar/

"I want to convey what O-Sensei himself taught to Aikido students. The most important thing, as O-Sensei used to say, is don’t get injured, don’t do wrong things, and don’t force techniques. Rather than show how strong you are, cultivate each other, and work together to show Aikido’s good techniques. This is how we become good Aikidoists. This is what O-Sensei said."

Shihan Morito Suganuma, 8th dan