SAOTOME Mitsugi Shihan
Mitsugi Saotome is one of the principal dicisple of O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba.
He studied with the Founder for more than 15 years in the Tokyo Aikikai, and was one of his last uchi deshi.
After teaching at the Hombu Dojo for several years, he emigrated to the United States in 1975 in order to, as he says, "fulfill O Sensei's wish that Aikido be developed all over the world."
After creating the Washington, D.C. Aikikai, which was his home dojo for many years, he founded the Aikido Schools of Ueshiba (ASU), which consists of numerous Dojos in the USA.
Saotome Sensei is also known in Canada and South America, where he regularly conducts seminars. He has created several books and videos, including Aikido and the Harmony of Nature, and The Principles of Aikido.
The Aikido Shrine Dojo has recently been constructed near Sensei's home in Sarasota, Florida. At present, Sensei is working on the creation of an international university for the training of Aikido teachers.