CAMP KINSER — Two Japan Ground Self-Defense Force soldiers from mainland Japan participated in the Japan Observer Exchange Program at the Camp Kinser Surfside Gym Jan. 25 - 29.
The program is organized by III Marine Expeditionary Force and JGSDF to allow both groups to learn about one another while improving relations between the two forces, according to Gunnery Sgt. Jose A. Ruiz, a tactical readiness training chief for 3rd Marine Logistic Group, III MEF.
"We volunteered for the course when asked, so we would get a chance to learn the martial arts of the Marine Corps," said JGSDF Sgt. 1st Class Yuichi Otaki, a soldier with Engineer School Training Support Unit and course participant.
Otaki and Sgt. Ryota Mori, a soldier with Ordnance School Training Support Unit, JGSDF, began the training with a combat fitness test.
The training was unique to them because it was more combat-oriented with events like the grenade toss and the ammo can lift, Otaki said. Training performed by the JGSDF focuses more on exercises like pushups and 3,000 meter runs, he added.
The exchange program also allowed the soldiers to receive a crash course in the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program.
"They don't have a lot of full-contact training back in mainland Japan, so this will give them something to take back," said Ruiz. "We started out with tan belt and worked our way up to black, but we are not qualifying them. We just wanted them to take what they need back to the mainland."
Otaki and Mori asked questions about moves and positions, taking time during their breaks to write down notes and talk to each other about what they learned.
"Japan is doing something very similar with martial arts, but the Marine Corps has a more step-by-step way of doing things. We were amazed at details of the techniques such as distance, angles and targeting areas," said Otaki.
The Marines were constantly trying to motivate them with their cheering and clapping creating a unique atmosphere different from the JGSDF, said the two soldiers.
"We learned about the high motivation the Marine Corps has whenever it conducts training," said Mori.
One of the more important things that he learned from the instructors during ground fighting was to stay calm, Mori added.
"That lesson can be applied to our daily lives as well as combat," he said.
They hope to take everything they learned back with them to mainland Japan where they can incorporate it into their own training, Otaki said.