“ I’m Akari Nakatani from Japan. I’ve been living in Vietnam for 9 years. Today I’m so honored to be here, because I’ve been practicing Vovinam for about one and a half years. Today’s session focuses on self-defense. There are some movements I haven’t learned yet, and it’s always a little hard for me to learn new movements, but practicing is very fun. Of course, learning how to defend myself is very practical. Because men generally have much more power than women. Hopefully, after practicing more, me and all the women can defend ourselves effectively.

For me, I think defending myself—or defending ourselves—is very difficult to reach that level in a real situation. But knowing versus not knowing makes a big difference. That’s why I hope every kid, every woman, and everyone can learn martial arts, like Vovinam, to protect themselves. And it’s not just about self-defense—it’s also great for your health”.