Who would you send to the olympics to compete in a hypothetical kendama event? Rules: 1. 2 events - KWC-style point system, and Freestyle; 2. Maximum of 3 players per event (you can have a player compete in both); 3. Preferably from your own country (unless you want to skimp the rules and represent the Refugee Olympic Team). My Philippine dream team looks like this: Freestyle Myself Zenos Lavandero (@_zenos on Instagram) Edric Owen Ladera KWC-style Zaqeus Coronel Jake Jude Mendioro Ysrael Rabe Honorable mention to James Del Pilar (@kingdamaph on Instagram)
This is a toughy. Picking a US team would be an insane task. It would clearly include Bonz, but narrowing it down to just 2 more…I mean there’s Josh Kim, Ben Herald, Wyatt Bray, Liam Rauter, not to mention the countless other known and unknown players of varying skill sets. Like Adrian Esteban, he’s among the string kings, but it would be hard to favor him in a KWC style tourney. Narrowing down my Olympic favs is very contingent on the tourney style, but I almost feel like this is too difficult to answer confidently. The raw skill of some of the new and developing players indicates that kendama will progress like Xgames. A backflip on a dirt bike was unheard of, now it’s mandatory. Not to mention Tony Hawk’s ground breaking 900 which is now routine for many amateurs. There are 12yo kids in Romania that would destroy your average American player in a game of KEN, so Dama to the Death rules could dramatically affect the podium. What also comes in to question is which tourney rules should be accepted as the best metric for declaring a victor. I’m interested in hearing other perspectives on this for sure. On a personal note I prefer freestyle despite its relatively subjective judging. However I think KWC style is a more precise measurement of someone’s skill level and consistency.
Picking a US team would be a nightmare haha. So many skilled players so you wouldn't know where to start. Freestyle, I would love to send people who have unique styles which appeal to the judges, yet are consistent enough to lace whatever they think of in the moment. Obvious picks for me are Bonz and Kenyatta Williams. Justin Clement of Shadow Realm Kendamas is also a good option for freestyle since his style is flashy and spacewalk flow is easy on the eyes. For a US KWC or Open-style division, consistency is key. Nick Gallagher and Bryson Lee are my picks, since they have experience under pressure at the KWC. 3rd pick would be a toss up between Liam Rauter, Josh Kim, or Zach Magnuson.
For sure! You have people like Markus Lander, Benji Mastek, and Rolf. I can bet Denmark has slayers which aren't even on the KROM team but are undiscovered talents.
Any idea who you would put on the Japanese team? Motty immediately springs to mind. So Kanada and Rui Sora as well. For freestyle, Iji and Kodama from Zoomadanke. Aventiss from grain theory would also be awesome in a freestyle event.
I would for sure Pick Markus lander, Benjamin mastek and Rolf for the danish team. Rolf is super consistent and a great freestyle player. Markus is super innovative and also good at more popular styles too. Benjamin tho is a player I could easily see take a win both at kwc and freestyle. He can pretty much do every trick and style, and he is freaky consistent too. If you ever see him play in person he is a monster. I would for sure place him with people like nick gallagher, bond and Wyatt bray in terms of skill and style. The danish team could destroy freestyle