With his son he immediately played in advance: “I courses online but we train safely even outdoors”
Elena Grassi
30 October 2020
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TREVISO. “Seven times down, eight times up” is the Japanese motto adopted at this time by Ofelio Michielan, founder of the historic Karate school “Ren Bu Kan” in Treviso, which in 2021 will celebrate 50 years of activity. And if today the gyms are forced to close, the martial arts sports association raises its head and finds a way to make a virtue of necessity, bringing its members to train in the suggestive context of the walls of Treviso, outdoors, very far apart and with standard template. That is all that, at least for the moment, the law allows.
Why this choice?
«In 53 years as a karateka I have learned that when falling, the first thing to think about is how to get up and this is the message we want to give. Are the gyms closed? As long as there is a chance to do the outdoor activity we will do it, we have wonderful spaces in the city that alone speak of life ».
Do you train in other places besides the walls?
“We are applying to be able to do activities in Piazza delle Istituzioni, and we would like to go to the park of Villa Margherita, moreover many private individuals have made their gardens available to us”.
What if it rains?
«If it rains you stay at home and follow the training online, we have already provided the little ones with a kit of simple tools to be used with the remote guide of the teacher. It is certain that the direct contact, the glance, the tone of the voice, create another atmosphere, but we cannot bow our heads and we must solve the problem ».
Is the outdoor activity for all your members?
«For the moment we are proposing it to adults, who train on the walls at 6 am with Maestro Davide Michielan, my son; and to agonists aged 12 to 18, who do afternoon activities, but we are also organizing for children. Each training group has no more than ten people to ensure the spacing and safety that always comes first. I specify that in the gym we had 250 members and since the opening of last May there has been no infection ».
How important is it for a child to keep doing the activity?
«Beyond the energy that the child needs to download, in this moment of closure making it clear that his place to train and his teacher are there, is a psychologically very important thing. Knowing that you can be in the park or on the walls to move forward together gives children hope, and it is also a return to the origins of karate because my old masters trained in the woods: a karateka has his feet firmly planted on the ground like the roots of a tree and the flexibility of its foliage, nature is inherent in this discipline “.—
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