Page 9 - Koi Net - On-Line Koi Magazine - Issue 6

THE 37th KANTO

DISTRICT KOI SHOW
Left: Toshio Kawakami and Below: The beginning of the
the NVN Friendship Trophy. award ceremony.
2018

Bernie Woollands gives his account of
Judging at the Kanto District Koi Show

I was invited to judge this show shortly after returning
from the ZNA Seminar in Tokyo held at the venue of the
I WAS PART AJNPA show in February. I didn’t need to think too hard
about accepting.
OF A THREE The Kanto District that gives this Koi show its name

Above: Blue Sky, Pink Sakura consists of seven prefectures in the greater Tokyo area
and Yellow Na-no-hana. MAN JUDGING
and according to Wikipedia it is home to approximately
Below: Ariel view of Tani Fish TEAM a third of Japan’s total population. For Koi purposes it is
Farm and Show.
a collaboration of six ZNA Chapters that come together
early in the year to present the show. Those six Chapters
are: Chiba, Kanagawa, Sakura, Saitama, Tochigi and
Tokyo. Each of these Chapters holds a separate show in
their own right at other times during the year.
The show was held at the premises of Tani Fish Farm
just outside the city of Chiba.
The paperwork I received prior to the show told me that
I was part of a three man judging team. The other
members, both Japanese, were people that I’d never
seen or worked with before. However, among the listed
names of the show personnel were four judges from
ZNA’s International Division who I had. So in summary, I
would be judging a show containing Koi entered by
some of my esteemed colleagues. Having occasionally
seen photographs of their Koi I was looking forward to
seeing them in the flesh. This being a ZNA show in
Japan the Koi would all be owned by hobbyists like the
shows in the UK.

Briefed with those facts I was expecting a larger show.
But I found out that the purpose of a District Show is to
focus on quality; and in that respect I wasn’t
Baby Champion. disappointed by the 187 Koi displayed in the 30 vats.
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