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Gakuji Tozaki interviewed by Rashaad Jorden (Yamagata 2008-2010, Kochi 2018-2020) This interview was conducted prior to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics postponement. Gakuji Tozaki is a karateka who has competed at a high level for the United States. This transcript has been edited for clarity and flow. Gakuji Tozaki has a YouTube channel.
In the United States, we see sensei and instructors as coaches. It’s okay to talk to
them normally. I talk to them when I want to. I ask them questions. When I don’t know something, I tell them I don’t know. I say things to make something clear because I don’t understand. But in Japan, it’s not really the same case. Especially in martial arts. If the instructor says something, you just do it. My instructor in the United States was kinda like that. As I became an adult, that slowly changed because my opinion mattered more as I became an adult. So I questioned my sensei in America.
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But the difference between the Japanese martial arts environment and American sports environment was big. So, there’s a big difference between a shihan and a coach. It’s kind of disrespectful to talk to a shihan in the first place. To me, it’s kind of weird because when I don’t know something or I want to make something clear, I want to talk to them. In Japan, senseis and shihans are very prestigious and they’re really respected. I didn’t experience that hierarchy in the United States, so it was
