AAMC Reporter: February 2009

An Artful Attack

Shirley McCartney, Ph.D., tightens her black belt and takes center stage. Her opponent quickly grabs her, but she responds by causing him to lose his balance and brings him to the floor. A group of awestruck young students watch the following series of seemingly choreographed grabs and throws, hoping they too will eventually be able to perform these moves.

If McCartney, 43, an assistant professor in the neurological surgery department at Oregon Health and Sciences University, makes the Japanese martial art of aikido look easy, it is only because she has been studying it for more than 20 years. She started aikido in her native Scotland when she needed a break from her rigorous course load, and hasn't stopped since. She now holds a fourth degree black belt.

"I really like throwing people around," McCartney jokes. "It's a physical activity I can do my whole life. A 70-year old woman still comes and trains with us."

When McCartney moved across the Atlantic to Portland, Ore., she quickly found a dojo, or studio, in which to practice. Soon she began teaching aikido to adults, where her dedication to the martial art became very apparent.

"I was pregnant and asking grown men to punch me," she laughs.

McCartney eventually moved over to teaching children, a challenge she says is very rewarding. "Kids are like a fresh canvas, they're young and full of energy, and so receptive to what you're teaching," McCartney said. "You get to see changes in them so much faster than adults."

McCartney's enthusiasm for aikido rubbed off on her family, as her husband and son both picked up the hobby almost 10 years ago. Last summer, her family went to Tokyo, Japan, to train at the aikido world headquarters and then toured throughout Japan and Hong Kong.

"Training there was a lot of fun," McCartney says. "It is such a large dojo and a very calming environment. Unlike the rest of Japan, which is busy, busy, busy."

—By Elissa Fuchs