March 2020 archive

This week in history (30 March – 5 April)

31 March On 31 March 1921, Tetsuji Murakami was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Described as a Karate missionary, Murakami began teaching Karate across Europe and North Africa during the infancy of the art outside of Japan. He was one of the first Japanese instructors to settle in Europe. Growing up Murakami was not interested …

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This week in history (23 March – 29 March)

23 March On 23 March 1996, South African, Marius Schoeman, became the thirteenth man to complete the 100-Man Kumite Challenge. 25 March On 25 March 2017, Hiroki Kurosawa died from acute heart failure. He was only 54 years old. At his family’s request, he was cremated in a small private summer ceremony. One of the …

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This week in history (16 March – 22 March)

17 March On 17 March 1990, the 7th World Championships (3rd Shoto Cup) took place at the Crowtree Leisure Centre, Sunderland, England. The two-day saw competitors from thirty countries taking part in seven events, i.e. four individual events and three team events. 18 March On 18 March 1964 Shotokan legend Keinosuke Enoeda was promoted to …

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This week in history (9 March – 15 March)

10 March On 10 March 1945, the Shotokan dojo was destroyed during the bombing raid of Tokyo by American B29 bombers, during World War II. The bombing raid had started the previous evening. An estimated 1665 tons of bombs were dropped on Tokyo. Much of Tokyo was destroyed, with an estimate 100000 people losing their …

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This week in history (2 March – 8 March)

2 March On 2 March 1955, Henri Plee was a founding member of the Federation Francais de Karate et Boxe Libre. He became the Federation’s first General Secretary. On 2 March 1960, Gichin Funakoshi’s eldest son, Yoshihide, died aged 71. Yoshihide Funakoshi is not as well known as his more talented younger brother Yoshitaka (Gigo). …

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Family Tree: Shotokan Karate – Pre 1945

Gichin Funakoshi, a school teacher from the island of Okinawa, arrived in Japan in 1922. He had come to Tokyo to take part in the 1st Annual Athletic Exhibition, hosted by the Ministry of Education. Following his display at the exhibition, there was plenty of interest in what Funakoshi was showing. He stayed on in …

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