Shane Higashi

Shane Higashi has been a pioneer of Chito-Ryu Karate in Canada. He’s been practising Karate for over 60 years. Karate has been a major part of his life.

Shane Yukio Higashi was born on 14th October 1940 in Chemainus, British Columbia, Canada. He was the third youngest of eleven children.

On 26 February 1942, the Canadian government made a formal declaration for the mass evacuation of people of Japanese descent to internment camps. More than 22,000 people were transferred to these camps.

Higashi and his family were forcibly removed from their home by the Canadian government to one of these internment camps.

In 1946, following the end of the war, Higashi and his family moved to Japan.

After 10 years of living in Japan, Higashi and his family returned to Toronto, Canada, in 1956.

In 1961, at the age of 21, Higashi began learning Chito-Ryu Karate under Mas Tsuroka. He was inspired by his brother-in-law, who practised Judo and held the rank of 4th Dan. He also had a Japanese relative who was a Karate 5th Dan. He soon became Tsuroka’s top student.

On 17 November 1962, the 1st Canadian Open Karate tournament was organised by Tsuroka. Higashi reached the final as a brown belt. He lost to Gary Alexander, who was a 3rd Dan black belt.

Tsuroka promoted Higashi to 1st Dan in 1962. Higashi trained with Tsuroka for a year before becoming his first black belt.

On 1 April 1963, Higashi opened the Higashi School of Karate in Toronto.

The 2nd Canadian Open Karate tournament was held in October 1963. The tournament attracted around 150 competitors from across Canada, the United States, Japan, and Hawaii. A crowd of 1500 people were in attendance. Higashi became Grand Champion.

In 1964, Tsuroka founded the NKA (National Karate Association of Canada).

Higashi was promoted to 2nd Dan by Tsuyoshi Chitose in 1965.

In January 1966, Higashi moved to Japan, where he stayed with family members. In Japan, he trained intensively with Tsuyoshi Chitose for seven months. At the end of his stay, Chitose promoted him to 4th Dan. He gave him a special issue instructor certificate, which was only issued to a select few.

Higashi was promoted to 5th Dan by Chitose in 1968. He received a further promotion to 6th Dan in 1972.

In 1974, Higashi officiated at the 1st Canadian Black Belt Championships, held in Alberta, by the NKA (National Karate Association).

In 1975, Motokatsu Inoue, the founder of Kubojutsu of the Ryukyu Hozon Shin Ko Kai, appointed Higashi his representative in Canada.

Mas Tsuroka stepped down as the director of the Canadian Chito-Kai Federation in 1979. He had become disillusioned with the direction the Federation was taking. He established the Tsuroka Karate-do Federation.

Higashi assumed the leadership of the Canadian Chito-Kai Federation in 1979, under Chitose. That same year, he was promoted to 7th Dan.

On 16 June 1984, Tsuyoshi Chitose died in hospital.

In 1986, the Chito-Ryu Association of Ontario was established. The association was the governing body of Chito-Ryu Karate in the United States. Higashi provided technical guidance to the association.

Higashi was promoted to 4th Dan in Kobujutsu in 1991 by Motokatsu Inoue’s son.

Four years later, Higashi helped to establish the Canadian Ryukyu Kobujutsu Association. The association aimed to preserve and promote traditional Kobujutsu.

Higashi was promoted to 8th Dan in Chito-Ryu by Tsuyoshi Chitose’s son in 1997.

In 2004, Higashi was the recipient of the Ross Rumbell Award from the NKA. The award is for an outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Canadian Karate.

In 2007, Higashi was inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame, alongside Benny Allen, Little Dave and Big Dave Chong, Quai Wong, Doug Rogers, and Masaru Shintani.

In November 2009, Higashi was promoted to 9th Dan by Mas Tsuroka. He was also given the title of Hanshi. The following year, he was promoted to 9th Dan by Karate Canada.

April 2013 marked Higashi’s 50th Anniversary of teaching Karate. That year, he was promoted to 10th Dan by the Canadian Chito-Ryu Association.

On 10 October 2014, the father of Canadian Karate, Mas Tsuroka, died.

As the representative of Ryukyu Kobujutsu in Canada, Higashi organised a seminar in Toronto from 22nd to 28th June 2017. There were participants from Canada andJapan.

A pioneer of Chito-Ryu Karate in Canada, Shane Higashi has been at the forefront of the development of Karate and Kobudo in Canada. He is the Chief Instructor of over 80 Chito-Ryu schools across North America and Canada.