Charlotte Vandersleyen Sensei is from Brussels, Belgium, and is now living in London, UK, and has been training for over 24 years, during which time she’s achieved:
- World Championships: 3rd place in 1999 and 2007; 4th place in 2019.
- European Championships: 1st place in 2008, 2016 and 2018. 3rd in 2014, 4th in 2012,
- Founder of the Portuguese Naginata Association
She holds the rank of naginata godan, kendo sandan and teaches at Aspire Naginata Club in London
In this wide-ranging conversation, we go from Vandersleyen Sensei’s early days getting into Naginata to a wide range of initiatives and organizations she has helped found and lead for the art in Europe and more recently across the globe.
Naginata @ Home can be found on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRHpBTyJEKMKDpi9V7eti-A
We also talk briefly about the complex nature of human interactions within the budo world -- usually overly simplified as “politics”, and the challenges & blessings of being “sensei-free”.
Vandersleyen has shown courage and resilience in her Naginata career these past couple of decades, and has mostly succeeded in not getting sucked into politics, and practicing purely for your pleasure of the art.
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