BEYOND THE BORDERS… INTRODUCTION
The title of this note has a connotation deeper than its meaning can define, because as you continue reading it will make more sense that what I’m expressing in this story.
First of all i want to give you the welcome to this blog. Surely, you read many stories in books or you know many stories about people you met in the course of your life, but not about a Championship. To my understanding, this story as others does not treat about the results and profits, because these are the product of who generate and how they did to take these profits to reality.
To write this story came to my mind while i was looking for pictures for the making of an advertising graphic. On the search, I found many images and memories lived with hundreds of people that i met and had relate in my life inside of the world of Martial Arts. One in particular, is the one that came to me in this moment to put it words and make this story and all the things that I have made inside of Martial Arts. This story makes me feel very good inside of me, and I want to share it with my colleagues and those who read this lines.
¿ Why sharing this? Precisely, I do not know but it is something that moves me to do it. Perhaps to some person it makes sense and can make a difference on that person.
Today I am here telling you this, tomorrow it may be become a memory, but I prefer to put my own words too.
To think and to watch just a little to the past makes me realize how much it made to this realization come true through many rehearsals and mistakes.
“TO DO” is part of our personal history, because not telling it gives to me the impression that we walk alone in the world and the only thing that we are showing is just the results, tomorrow another one and thus successively.
As we know, with the vortex in which we live, we occasionally take a rest until we see our vision realize and as counterpart of the doing also occurs that we don’t give us space to ourselves to recognize our own profits.
It seems like the clock is accelerated and we are running after the seconds.
On the personal thing, i like a lot talking with successful people and reading notes about dreamers that triumphed. Because to be successful they have passed by a lot of challenges and if we take conscience of it, we must considerate that, the people who triumphed on some moment had to start from zero or counting just with a lazy idea.
I’m convinced that for the success there is no prescriptions, each one has its own.
Some time, i read that to win it is necessary “to fill of mud”. Not everyone choose for that option. And I think that the people who has dreams and go after it, have put a lot of courage and they have a strong conviction.
The ones who are organizers of “Events” or people who make personal projects, knows by self experience what cost to carry out it, and many times it is not the money which leaves yield but it leaves the compensate that you can make it. But that is part of the winning game.The ones who are organizers of events also know that the mass media speaks about the results of the event, but nothing about the person who did everything.
That is the reason why it seemed opportune to me, to tell this to a public who, i guess, like to know about the space that an organizer walks to get to the line and perhaps this little story can enrich to some person that is walking on a realization stage.
That thing that passes unnoticed in front of the others eyes is what I’m trying to express in this story.
Walking is the way to make road.
In order to begin I must say that this story, for the ones who don’t know about the Republic Argentina’s Open, is one of the biggest and outstanding Martial Arts Open Championships of the country, not because I make reference of that, just because the actual results speaks for themselves. However, for this result there were previous restlessness and situations to confront.
In 1983, i made my first Martial Arts Open Tournament, following determined organizational patterns of those organizers who i took as reference and adopted the way in which these were organize by the existing system. If there is something I must recognize is that I’m one of those people that passionate to innovate and not doing more of the same.
In 1990 I noted that there were many tournaments with different names and hierarchies, but none of them made reference to a national identity characterizing to our country. After a talk with a colleague-friend, we took the accomplishment of the Republic Argentina National Tournament Cup in the year of 1991, where we beat all records of call. Argentina became present from all the places.
In 1992 because of questions of visions and different ideas, we took different ways. That same year I created “The Republic Argentina’s Open Championship”. That was the time when I felt inner that the name had own weight and that identified what i considered the championship of the Argentineans. The championship whose vision was, to reunite to those schools from different styles and different regions of the country.
But it was not all saying there. As an event, it needed to add an added value that differs in the way to organize itself, that this one obtained a bigger identity, and be the reflect of an annual encounter of the schools of the country under a more original proposal.
The change of the name added to a personal context for that time, the realization of the Republic Argentina’s Open was to return to the beginning. Well, the call was not the awaited one, as in amount of competitors as the provinces to reflect an event, which I saw more.
United States. “Cradle of change”
In 1995 I traveled for the first time to a country outside of South America. United States was the destiny. Along with a team of professors of different styles, we traveled to participate in the World Championship Open “The Battle of Atlanta”, organized by “Joe Corley”, who is one of the biggest organizers of the championships of that country and I have to recognize that he was my inspiration.
Considering the amount of habitants that the United States has, it can appreciate the magnitude of his event (3400 competitors), like also the public personality, that Corley is.There, I lived an event that did not fit with anything similar of the things that was doing in the Argentina, but i must considerate by a geographic question, a long distance between the Argentina and the United States and therefore to understand the existing cultural differences. And that, if I wanted to produce a change i would have to assume a new challenge to obtain my personal vision and have presence in the outside to harvest experiences.
Combat categories with new rules, musical forms, creative forms, musical forms with weapons, extreme kicks, and others, were specialties that were not made in the open championships of Argentina and they were unknown. The most shock thing to me was to see the organizational unfolding of that giant event.
This took to me to think that the Argentina open should have new specialties, new ways of organize itself and have something to distinguished it. It did not have to be the event, but its attractive and its proposal. The strategy was to present something new and different.
A starting over.
This journey represented to me a waking up and an opportunity of change to understand that the tournament as event can offer, to the future generations of Argentineans competitors, an opportunity to be aligned to the new international sports modalities and an opportunity so that the Republic Argentina’s Open had that ingredient that distinguished it.
That same year (1995), I began to train competitors, preparing them in this new specialty of the musical forms to show it in tournaments until soon, the organizers began to include in their events.
Thus, it happened also with the change on the new sport rules of fight and to some new concepts referred to organizational dynamics.
In spite of this, the following edition of the Republic Argentina Open that made in 1996, it did not see anything favored by the proposed changes.
As it is know the changes not always are welcome, but inner I know that, everything was a question of time and perseverance.
The law of the synchronicity.
In my journey to the United States I related with many promoters of important events, among them, I met Jorge Porres from Guatemala with the one i have a friendship today, and other organizers of Latin American countries.
I had meetings, talks and have participated in seminaries that allowed me to be in tune with the changes.
I talk the changes subject with my new colleagues and they explained to me that they passed for that too and they were precursory in apply new methodologies, taking as a point of start the competition rules.
I established a warm relationship with my new colleagues and between I agree the participation of my school and Argentinean competitors in different Events, so they can enrich with new experiences. So we did it.
We participated in Venezuela, Guatemala (2), Puerto Rico and in several occasions in the United States (4).
On the personal thing, this opening allowed me to harvest bigger experience to enrich my championships and the classes of the new specialties that I have found dictating in different parts of the country looking for they become popular through the time.
Through this international contacts I started to promote the “Republic Argentina’s Open”, making the championship become in qualifying match with the intention of participate on the International Events of the countries named.
During a period of years, since 1995 to 2000, while we were harvesting international experience, the Republic Argentina’s Open was marked with a greater recognition and growth in call, while the new changes were accept gradually by the schools and understood what i was persecuting with my annual championship in Argentina. A change, no more of the same, and an international opening at least for the ones who wish something new.
First of all i want to give you the welcome to this blog. Surely, you read many stories in books or you know many stories about people you met in the course of your life, but not about a Championship. To my understanding, this story as others does not treat about the results and profits, because these are the product of who generate and how they did to take these profits to reality.
To write this story came to my mind while i was looking for pictures for the making of an advertising graphic. On the search, I found many images and memories lived with hundreds of people that i met and had relate in my life inside of the world of Martial Arts. One in particular, is the one that came to me in this moment to put it words and make this story and all the things that I have made inside of Martial Arts. This story makes me feel very good inside of me, and I want to share it with my colleagues and those who read this lines.
¿ Why sharing this? Precisely, I do not know but it is something that moves me to do it. Perhaps to some person it makes sense and can make a difference on that person.
Today I am here telling you this, tomorrow it may be become a memory, but I prefer to put my own words too.
To think and to watch just a little to the past makes me realize how much it made to this realization come true through many rehearsals and mistakes.
“TO DO” is part of our personal history, because not telling it gives to me the impression that we walk alone in the world and the only thing that we are showing is just the results, tomorrow another one and thus successively.
As we know, with the vortex in which we live, we occasionally take a rest until we see our vision realize and as counterpart of the doing also occurs that we don’t give us space to ourselves to recognize our own profits.
It seems like the clock is accelerated and we are running after the seconds.
On the personal thing, i like a lot talking with successful people and reading notes about dreamers that triumphed. Because to be successful they have passed by a lot of challenges and if we take conscience of it, we must considerate that, the people who triumphed on some moment had to start from zero or counting just with a lazy idea.
I’m convinced that for the success there is no prescriptions, each one has its own.
Some time, i read that to win it is necessary “to fill of mud”. Not everyone choose for that option. And I think that the people who has dreams and go after it, have put a lot of courage and they have a strong conviction.
The ones who are organizers of “Events” or people who make personal projects, knows by self experience what cost to carry out it, and many times it is not the money which leaves yield but it leaves the compensate that you can make it. But that is part of the winning game.The ones who are organizers of events also know that the mass media speaks about the results of the event, but nothing about the person who did everything.
That is the reason why it seemed opportune to me, to tell this to a public who, i guess, like to know about the space that an organizer walks to get to the line and perhaps this little story can enrich to some person that is walking on a realization stage.
That thing that passes unnoticed in front of the others eyes is what I’m trying to express in this story.
Walking is the way to make road.
In order to begin I must say that this story, for the ones who don’t know about the Republic Argentina’s Open, is one of the biggest and outstanding Martial Arts Open Championships of the country, not because I make reference of that, just because the actual results speaks for themselves. However, for this result there were previous restlessness and situations to confront.
In 1983, i made my first Martial Arts Open Tournament, following determined organizational patterns of those organizers who i took as reference and adopted the way in which these were organize by the existing system. If there is something I must recognize is that I’m one of those people that passionate to innovate and not doing more of the same.
In 1990 I noted that there were many tournaments with different names and hierarchies, but none of them made reference to a national identity characterizing to our country. After a talk with a colleague-friend, we took the accomplishment of the Republic Argentina National Tournament Cup in the year of 1991, where we beat all records of call. Argentina became present from all the places.
In 1992 because of questions of visions and different ideas, we took different ways. That same year I created “The Republic Argentina’s Open Championship”. That was the time when I felt inner that the name had own weight and that identified what i considered the championship of the Argentineans. The championship whose vision was, to reunite to those schools from different styles and different regions of the country.
But it was not all saying there. As an event, it needed to add an added value that differs in the way to organize itself, that this one obtained a bigger identity, and be the reflect of an annual encounter of the schools of the country under a more original proposal.
The change of the name added to a personal context for that time, the realization of the Republic Argentina’s Open was to return to the beginning. Well, the call was not the awaited one, as in amount of competitors as the provinces to reflect an event, which I saw more.
United States. “Cradle of change”
In 1995 I traveled for the first time to a country outside of South America. United States was the destiny. Along with a team of professors of different styles, we traveled to participate in the World Championship Open “The Battle of Atlanta”, organized by “Joe Corley”, who is one of the biggest organizers of the championships of that country and I have to recognize that he was my inspiration.
Considering the amount of habitants that the United States has, it can appreciate the magnitude of his event (3400 competitors), like also the public personality, that Corley is.There, I lived an event that did not fit with anything similar of the things that was doing in the Argentina, but i must considerate by a geographic question, a long distance between the Argentina and the United States and therefore to understand the existing cultural differences. And that, if I wanted to produce a change i would have to assume a new challenge to obtain my personal vision and have presence in the outside to harvest experiences.
Combat categories with new rules, musical forms, creative forms, musical forms with weapons, extreme kicks, and others, were specialties that were not made in the open championships of Argentina and they were unknown. The most shock thing to me was to see the organizational unfolding of that giant event.
This took to me to think that the Argentina open should have new specialties, new ways of organize itself and have something to distinguished it. It did not have to be the event, but its attractive and its proposal. The strategy was to present something new and different.
A starting over.
This journey represented to me a waking up and an opportunity of change to understand that the tournament as event can offer, to the future generations of Argentineans competitors, an opportunity to be aligned to the new international sports modalities and an opportunity so that the Republic Argentina’s Open had that ingredient that distinguished it.
That same year (1995), I began to train competitors, preparing them in this new specialty of the musical forms to show it in tournaments until soon, the organizers began to include in their events.
Thus, it happened also with the change on the new sport rules of fight and to some new concepts referred to organizational dynamics.
In spite of this, the following edition of the Republic Argentina Open that made in 1996, it did not see anything favored by the proposed changes.
As it is know the changes not always are welcome, but inner I know that, everything was a question of time and perseverance.
The law of the synchronicity.
In my journey to the United States I related with many promoters of important events, among them, I met Jorge Porres from Guatemala with the one i have a friendship today, and other organizers of Latin American countries.
I had meetings, talks and have participated in seminaries that allowed me to be in tune with the changes.
I talk the changes subject with my new colleagues and they explained to me that they passed for that too and they were precursory in apply new methodologies, taking as a point of start the competition rules.
I established a warm relationship with my new colleagues and between I agree the participation of my school and Argentinean competitors in different Events, so they can enrich with new experiences. So we did it.
We participated in Venezuela, Guatemala (2), Puerto Rico and in several occasions in the United States (4).
On the personal thing, this opening allowed me to harvest bigger experience to enrich my championships and the classes of the new specialties that I have found dictating in different parts of the country looking for they become popular through the time.
Through this international contacts I started to promote the “Republic Argentina’s Open”, making the championship become in qualifying match with the intention of participate on the International Events of the countries named.
During a period of years, since 1995 to 2000, while we were harvesting international experience, the Republic Argentina’s Open was marked with a greater recognition and growth in call, while the new changes were accept gradually by the schools and understood what i was persecuting with my annual championship in Argentina. A change, no more of the same, and an international opening at least for the ones who wish something new.
The big step. “All or nothing”
By the end of the 2000, Argentina suffered a big social economic crisis and given the ruling situation just a few open tournament were realize.
Under this social situation (crisis) I started in the 2001 the accomplishment of the next “Republic Argentina’s Open”, but developing a strategy that would implicate a strong advertising campaign never made for an event in Argentina.
I promoted the Championship with the slogan “Year 10”. Well, this slogan point not just the tenth edition but also a period of 10 years of transition, realization of journeys, international participation and in addition was the souvenir to recognize to all those professors and competitors who have participated in the process of renovation of this Argentinean event. In particular, I think that because of the situation that the country was going through, this was also the ingredient that stimulated to all be more united.
The call was an absolute record and we counted with the participation of foreign schools from Uruguay and Paraguay.
The Stairs. “The next step”
In the 2002 begins a new period for the Republic Argentina’s Open, repeating the strong participation of provinces and countries.
That same year, it’s announce the biggest proposal that represented a management realized of many years…. The accomplishment of the 1st “World Open Championship Argentina 2005” and so the Republic Argentina’s Open become the 1st qualifying match of the 32 realized through the creation of a “National Circuit” of open tournaments.
In the 2003 I change the denomination of the championship and I promoted as the International Republic Argentina’s Open “Beyond the borders”. It was not just an event for the Argentineans. We counted with the international participation, that year by year they were adding and that in addition the competition was enriching.
With bigger call of schools from Argentina and from the outside through the years with more than a thousand of competitors, the “Republic Argentina’s Open” today become in an annual classic, as an international championship.
Beyond the borders, not just represent the schools that cross the border of our country to participate in this event, well the slogan, from my personal meaning, was to have to think different from what I thought, to make different what i was doing so the vision could be carry out. The significant thing of all this for me….was to surpass my own barriers, that only who takes challenges knows what represents the word overcoming. Not always, the road is straightforward.
In this championship it have been formed and have born great champions who participated internationally and have been World champions, also i have count with the presence and participation of important international masters and argentine masters who are international reference.
Perhaps this little story about how born and where the “Republic Argentina’s Open” went, could be a little flame for who is walking a road for its personal profit.
In this story I don’t want to let of recognize and say thanks to the people who contribute (competitors, mass media, judges, umpires, masters, instructors, trainers, coaches, staff and the family) to that the Republic Argentina’s Open be the event which is today.
I believe important to recognize that when we start something there is also many people that cross in our life, and they are not in the event but they enrich the facts too.
From this space I want to recognize all the organizers and directives of Argentina and of the world, well they also do and are generators of changes, they are who leave legacies and have opened road inside of the Martial Arts, and that lamentably often, the recognitions occur after they have passed away.
To all of you that you are on the road, to those who continue fighting and does not find the exit door, may be they do not tell their stories…but they carry on.
To all of them, my recognition and this gift...
Eduardo Sanchez.
Dreams.
…And just like that, after a long wait, a day like any else,
I decide to triumph…I decided to look for the opportunities, not to wait.
I decided to see every problem as the opportunity to find a solution
I decided to see every desert as the opportunity to find an oasis
I decided to see every night as a mystery to solve
I decided to see every day as a new opportunity to be happy.
That day I found that my only rival was my own weaknesses,
And in them, is the only way and better way of surpassed us.
That day I lost the fear of loosing and I started to fear of no winning,
I discovered that I was not the best and maybe never was.
I stop caring about who was the winner or the looser.
Now I care just knowing more than yesterday.
I learned that the hard thing is never stop climbing to the top, not to reach it.
I learned that the better triumph that I can have, is to have the right of calling someone “my friend”
I discovered that the love is more than a feeling of being in love, “the love is a philosophy of life”
That day I stopped being a reflect of my few triumphs of the past and I started to be my own tenuous light of this present;
I learned that it do not matter if you are a being light if you are not going to illuminate the others road.
That day I decided to change so many things…
That day I learned that the dreams only are to make come true
Since that day I don’t sleep to rest
Now, I dream just for dreams.
I decided to see every problem as the opportunity to find a solution
I decided to see every desert as the opportunity to find an oasis
I decided to see every night as a mystery to solve
I decided to see every day as a new opportunity to be happy.
That day I found that my only rival was my own weaknesses,
And in them, is the only way and better way of surpassed us.
That day I lost the fear of loosing and I started to fear of no winning,
I discovered that I was not the best and maybe never was.
I stop caring about who was the winner or the looser.
Now I care just knowing more than yesterday.
I learned that the hard thing is never stop climbing to the top, not to reach it.
I learned that the better triumph that I can have, is to have the right of calling someone “my friend”
I discovered that the love is more than a feeling of being in love, “the love is a philosophy of life”
That day I stopped being a reflect of my few triumphs of the past and I started to be my own tenuous light of this present;
I learned that it do not matter if you are a being light if you are not going to illuminate the others road.
That day I decided to change so many things…
That day I learned that the dreams only are to make come true
Since that day I don’t sleep to rest
Now, I dream just for dreams.
(Walt Disney)
PRESS
1 comentario:
Eduardo Sanchez,
Seu relato é simplesmente vivo e presente! É de fato um Presente para todos que lêem o seu blog - como no Efeito Borboleta, você fez a sua diferença neste planeta ao compartilhar sua experiência dessa forma tão viva, presente, única e tão integrada.
Muito obrigada. Você fez o meu dia mais completo.
Roseli
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