PNKF Women's Kendo Tournament

July 2025

Womens Kendo

The PNKF Women’s Tournament – KendoWorld article

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This article was originally printed in KendoWorld, Volume 6.1, December, 2011 and appears here courtesy of KendoWorld.

The Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation’s North American Women’s Taikai is the official (and a mouthful of a title) tournament started in 2001 by Jeff Marsten Sensei (7dan, kyoshi) and is held every 3 years in the greater Seattle area. We in the PNKF lovingly refer to it as “chicks with sticks” or by “the women’s taikai.” [Read more…] about The PNKF Women’s Tournament – KendoWorld article

Women in Kendo at the 5th US Nito Seminar

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June 30th-July 1st, McMinnville, Oregon. 3 sensei from Musashi Kai in Japan, including Ako Ishimura sensei, 6dan (pictured below, center) who passed the kodansha exam doing nito! She will be in the women’s All Japan Taikai next month as well. Good luck Ishimura sensei!

We also had the pleasure of instruction from Hirotsugu Sasaki sensei, 7dan kyoshi and Ryoichi Fujii sensei, 7dan kiyoshi. Fantastic seminar-whether you’ve done nito before or not, if you get a chance to go in 2013, go!

Check out this news story on Ishimura sensei and Fujii sensei.

Congrats to the PNKF Women’s Team!

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pnkf womens kendo

Amy Arsenault, Julie Chen, Hana Lee, Elizabeth Marsten, Noelle Grimes, Janelle Frazier-Day, Coach Jeff Marsten, Manager Jeff Marsten

2nd Place Finish at the 12th AUSKF National Championships
August 13, 2011, Atlanta, GA

Congrats to the PNKF Senior Youth Girls Team!

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girls kendo

Coach Jeff Marsten, Bernice Lin, Jennifer DeJong, Mia Abe, Melanie DeJong, Alina Saltzman, Erica DeJong, Manager Jeff Marsten

2nd Place Finish at the 12th AUSKF National Championships
August 13, 2011, Atlanta, GA