A DUNDEE STUDENT is preparing to fight it out at the World Shodokan Aikido Championships but only if she can raise enough money for her flight ticket.
Louise Saul (23) is a black belt member of the British squad and is hoping to fly out with the team to the international competition in Osaka, Japan, in July.
She said: “What I’m trying to do is get sponsorship and I’ve got to raise around £500 to £1,000 for the flight over.
“I’ve already got a silver medal at the European championships and the next stage for me would be winning a world title but, if I don’t get sponsorship, I don’t get out there.”
Louise, who is originally from Sheffield, only took up the sport 5 years ago when she was a fresher at Sheffield University studying biochemistry.
“It was the first martial arts I’d ever done but I went to my first year sports fair and I’ve never really looked back.
“In my first year I was training five times a week.”
Louise moved up to Dundee last year to complete her PhD researching type 2 diabetes and she runs her own Shodokan Aikido club from the Scottish Ju Jitsu Centre in Douglas Street.
Explaining why she set up the club, Louise said: “For the style of aikido I do there’s only one club in Scotland, in Edinburgh. We’ve been really successful this year with 20 members.
“We train once a week and we’ve got a mixture of levels.
“Some of the guys come through from Edinburgh and we had a big recruitment day in October too.”
Louise has progressed through the eight kyu grades before the dan grades for her black belt which she attained last June.
It was also last year that she competed in the European championships in Geneva where she won her silver medal.
She is now hoping businesses will get behind her and help get her to Japan to fight for a gold.
“It would mean a lot to represent my country,” she said. “I am currently training hard but unless I raise the money needed I won’t be able to go.”
The championships will be held on the 50th anniversary of the founding of Shodokan Aikido.
The organisers have billed it as: “A time to forge or strengthen friendships and unite across the world. This event will also provide the opportunity to promote Shodokan Aikido in and around Osaka.”
The Aikido World Championships are held in Japan every four years with numerous international events held in between.
ksmyth@thecourier.co.uk