"I STARTED out with an incredibly impressive young teacher, who eventually became a great master," says Australian Aiki Kai Association president Tony Smibert from his home in Deloraine.
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"I was very lucky because he was my teacher for 45 years."
The seventh-dan black-belt is a member of the International Aikido Federation senior council and travels the world as an artist and teaching aikido, a defensive, non-violent style of martial art developed in Japan by Morihei Ueshiba.
"After so many years, Australia now has several people teaching internationally and we're often asked to lead seminars in other countries," Smibert said.
Aikido's origins in Tasmania can be traced back to two people - Japanese Sensei Seiichi Sugano and Launceston's Peter Yost.
Yost was a judo student in Tasmania before starting the aikido organisation in 1965, shortly before Sugano Sensei arrived in Sydney.
Two years later Yost persuaded Sugano Sensei to present a seminar in Tasmania.
Since then, aikido has maintained a strong presence in the state.
"One of Sugano Sensei's cherished ideas was that quality rather than quantity was what counted," Mr Smibert said.
"So, he wasn't particularly fussed if he was teaching two people or 200.
"He devoted his life to aikido. Among the many extraordinary things about him was his genuine modesty - he was very confident of who he was but never showed off. He was immensely powerful but very kind."
Launceston had an important role in the growth of aikido in Australia.
In 1965 the Launceston dojo was the first Tasmanian training facility to affiliate with the official aikido headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.
Yost's widow Lorna Yost said her husband had a strong influence on the growth of aikido in northern Tasmania.
"(Peter) started aikido in Launceston," she said.
Mrs Yost remembers when the young men were totally focused on training and travelling to different dojos.
"They were a lovely crowd, they really were, all of them," she said.
Aikido in Launceston was first practised in a YMCA building used for judo on Brisbane Street.
The venue changed over time from the YMCA to the PCYC in Wentworth Street to upstairs in a glass factory on Frederick Street, followed by an old church hall in Campbell Street.
Since the turn of the millennium, the classes have been held at the Launceston University campus where today students of Sugano Sensei still come together weekly to practice the aiki kai-style of aikido.
After the passing of Sugano Sensei as leader, the torch was passed to a younger generation, especially Smibert who was one of the first home-grown Australian black-belt holders in aikido.
"I began training in 1964 just prior to Sugano Sensei's arrival in Australia," Smibert said.
"He arrived in Sydney when he was 25 - a fantastic instructor from Japan. Over the next 45 years he continued to study and train and he matured into someone very special - the sort of old master you read of in books.
"I was with Sensei (Sugano) virtually from the time he arrived and was with him when he died in New York."
The current Launceston dojo was built in April 2009 by the university to be used by various martial arts groups, yoga and fitness.
Sensei Peter Henley, a fourth dan black-belt and teacher in Launceston, has been practising aikido for 40 years.
Mr Henley first saw aikido in Hobart while he was doing tae-kwon-do.
"Aikido is a spiritual thing," he said.
"It's a long-term path. There is a lot to learn. Long-term training is required."
John Karas, a sixth dan black-belt and head instructor for aikido in Launceston, has trained in the city virtually since the beginning.
"I first saw aikido at the Launceston YMCA. I was doing judo at the time and didn't start until a few years after," he said.
Mike Seward started studying aikido in 2000, a first-level black belt who is a diligent student and another who practised during Sugano's time.
"Aikido is about learning restraint," he said.
"I find that an interesting dimension about what aikido is trying to teach you. You're learning the martial technique to avoid the violence of the conflict, but you are then getting into a position to talk it through or take control.
"I enjoy the camaraderie, the physicality of it, the sheer joy of rolling - it's like surfing or skateboarding."
Bodhi McSweeney and her husband Martin Bratzel teach in Deloraine and Meander.
They have built their own dojo in Meander which attracts students from around the world to experience the peace of Tasmania's natural surroundings.
McSweeney is part of the organising group for Aiki Kai's Australia international summer school in 2016.
"It will be at the University of Tasmania, using the facility at the uni gym. We're going to be setting up in the basketball court there," McSweeney said.
"We tend to run it every 10 years or so in Tasmania. We're probably looking at between 100 and 150 people coming. People are really excited about it because they love Tassie."
Twice a year Aiki Kai Australia hosts international meetings. The summer and winter schools take place at different venues around Australia. The 2015 Summer School held in Melbourne in January attracted about 430 participants from all around the world.
The 2016 Summer School will be held in Launceston from January 11 to 16.
Anyone interested in aikido in Launceston or with questions about the sport can contact Sensei Peter Henley on 0457 495 480 or go to the Aiki Kai Australia national website aikido.org.au which will link to the Tasmanian website.