Preface Koos van Hattum Sensei

Louis Vitalis is a remarkable personality and I’ve known him for a very long time. At first somewhat from a distance. He trained in Amsterdam at Shin Bu Ken (later Museido) and I at Fumetsu in Rotterdam. Louis is a few years younger than me, and he started a few years earlier with kendo.
Gradually, we came across each other with increasing frequency. Initially during the central training, then at matches and later also as national team members and much later as fellow referees during European Championships.
Over this long period I have learned a lot from Louis. Apart from kendo technical guidance, Louis contributed a lot to my development as an international referee and as a kendo teacher. He has advised me and coached me during the preparations for my dan examinations.
Louis contributed not only to my kendo development. His greatest merit is his commitment over the past few decades to the entire Dutch Kendo, Iaido and Jodo. His inexhaustible knowledge and technical skills, coupled with didactic insight, have inspired and raised the levels of many practitioners in The Netherlands. For the Dutch Kendo Renmei, Louis is an important link between the Netherlands and Japan. He has brought us into contact with Edo sensei, Iijima sensei and Ishido sensei. Many other renowned teachers came in their slipstream and that stream is still going on. Every time there are new top instructors present at seminars. Equally important, NKR members can travel to Japan to train with these teachers. In this way, we are assured that the levels of Kendo, Iaido and Jodo in The Netherlands remain as high as they can be and that we in turn can make a contribution to the developments in Europe.
I am pleased and grateful that Louis has found the time to write his memoirs and that it is now possible for everyone to read them.

Koos van Hattum
(President NKR)