April 2018 archive

This week in history (30 April – 6 May)

On 30 April 1957 the British Karate Federation (BKF) held its very first grading in Britain, on the lawn at 12 Maybush Road, Hornchurch. Two students, Trevor Guilfoyle and Gerald Tucker were both graded to 6th kyu. On 3 May 1931, Shotokan master and legend, Hirokazu Kanazawa, was born in Miyako, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Kanazawa, a student of …

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Cover Star: Unel Wellington

An honoree of the Combat Magazine’s Hall of fame, Unel Wellington is a founding member of the Welsh Karate Association. As a fighter and mentor he has managed to navigate the path between the colliding worlds of modern and traditional Karate. Below are some of the magazine covers to feature this innovative instructor. March 1989  …

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Cover Star: Chuck Merriman

Chuck Merriman is a true pioneer of American Karate. He began his Karate journey in 1962 under Chris DeBaise, one of the first Goju-ryu instructors in the United States. He later started training with Peter Urban, another pioneer early of Goju-ryu Karate in the United States. Over the years, as an instructor and coach, Merriman …

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This week in history (23 April – 29 April)

On 24 April 1965 the second authorized demonstration given by the JKA in Britain took place at the Hornsey Town Hall, London. The event was organised by Vernon Bell. The JKA party were led by Taiji Kase, who had trained at the original  Shotokan dojo; and also contained Hirokazu Kanazawa, Keinosuke Enoeda and Hiroshi Shirai, who were …

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This week in history (16 April – 22 April)

On 20 April 1966 Edward Whitcher becomes the first British student to be graded to black belt by Hirokazu Kanazawa under the JKA. He has been described as the finest Shotokan karate-ka produced by Britain. He started his Karate training with the British Karate Federation in 1963. Whitcher was a founding member of the Karate Union of …

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This week in history (9 April – 15 April)

On April 11, 1907, Minoru Mochizuki, the founder of the Yoseikan dojo, was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Mochizuki was one of the few men to have been a direct student of the three great Budo masters, Jigoro Kano, Morihei Uesiba and Gichin Funakoshi. An accomplished martial artist, Mochizuki held a 10th Dan in Aikido; a …

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This week in history (2 April – 8 April)

On April 4, 1947 Mikio Yahara, one of the most dynamic fighters to come out of the JKA, was born in Ehime Prefecture. Yahara is a firm believer in a budo approach to Karate. In 2000 he broke away from the JKA to form his own organisation, Karatenomichi World Federation (KWF). The organisation is built on the …

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