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Ben sensei started Aikido during a short research stint in Christchurch, NZ. His NZ colleague was talking feverishly about this so called ‘Aikido’ martial art; something Ben has very limited knowledge of but was keen to find out more. Following along for his first lesson he found that he had 2 left feet, and limbs that seem to have minds of their own which just couldn’t mimic sensei’s movements. Upon returning from his NZ trip and all gung-ho about continuing Aikido, he joined the Griffith Aikido Club in 2003. Starting off with just 2 classes per week, and then to 3 and finally to 5 classes a week, he was soon hooked.

Being a PhD student at that time and living on campus meant Ben could plan his social life around experiments, but somehow ended up planning his research around Aikido. Ben reckons Griffith Aikido offered many instructors who taught the different classes per week which just could not be missed as each one of them had something special to offer. He found the journey through the different belt levels very interesting and rewarding; supported by a good group of Aikido mates.

Ben received his Shodan (black belt) in March 2006 at the Goshinkan Dojo, Byron Bay and began teaching the beginners’ courses shortly thereafter. Taking on the Saturday Aikido class at Nathan dojo in January 2007 when Gabby sensei left for a backpacking /Aikido adventure in Latin America, Ben hasn’t looked back. In real life, Ben was conferred his PhD in Environmental Toxicology in May 2007 by Griffith University and is currently employed as a Research Scientist by Queensland Health.