| 2006 All Japan Show winner article.
I'm just wondering how many of you read the David Standen article in Koi USA July/August 2006 issue, about Super Mask owned by Martin and Mark and bred by Sakai. This article sort of makes it sound like everyone already knew who the winner was going to be before the 2006 All Japan Show. The article also claims that Martin and Mark had the best fish in the 2005 show but sort of got cheated. According to the article their Maruten Kohaku bred by Sakai was overwhelmingly considered to be the best fish in the show, but lost to the winning Showa because the Showa had better standing and history.
He further makes it sound like a Westerner may finially have won because the Japanese koi industry needed a foreign winner, in part to help overcome the difficulties of the Niigata earthquake, KHV scares, and a faltering Japanese economy. He also suggests the upcoming Japanese generation does not pursue koi with the same passion as the previous generation.
So does this David Standen truly have insider knowledge of how "politics" influence the outcome of Japanese shows, or is he just trying to generate publicity for his documentary? Any opinions?
Mitch |