Apr 26 2021
26 April On 26 April 1957, Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan Karate, died in a Tokyo hospital, aged 88. His family and close student Shigeru Egami were at his bedside. On 26 April 1965, a touring party from the JKA gave their third authorized demonstration in Britain. The party consisted of Taiji Kase, Hirokazu …
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Nov 23 2020
23 November On 23 November 1963, Shotokai master, Mitsusuke Harada gave a Karate demonstration at the Royal Albert Hall, during the National Judo Championships. Judo great, Kenishiro Abbe’s organisation, the British Budo Council, had invited Harada. On 23 November 1986, the third day of the 8th WUKO World Karate Championships took place in Sydney, Australia. …
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Nov 16 2020
16 November On 16 November 1928 Mitsusuke Harada was born in Dalian, China, then a part of the Japanese Empire. Harada began his training in 1945, under Genshin Hironishi (a senior student of Gichin Funakoshi), at the original Shotokan dojo in Zoshigaya, Tokyo. He also had the opportunity to be taught by Yoshitaka Funakoshi. In …
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Oct 27 2020
Everyone has a goal. Whether that is to become a world champion or not doesn’t really matter. Although your goal may often look hard to achieve at first, if you continually make efforts towards your goal, then your time, energy and commitment will never have been wasted. So, keep it up as much as you …
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Sep 21 2020
21 September On 21 September 1980 Ronnie Christopher was promoted to 1st Dan by Keinosuke Enoeda. One of the best competitors of his generation, Christopher won numerous titles nationally and internationally. He was part of the British team that won the 1990 Shoto Cup in Sunderland, England, defeating the previously undefeated Japan in the team …
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Sep 07 2020
7 September On 7 September 1959 the first British Karate Federation (BKF) Summer Course was held. It was a six-day course held at the Ippon Judo Club, located in the basement of the Imperial Private Hotel, Scarborough, Yorkshire. The course was conducted by Vernon Bell and was limited to twenty students. It was open to …
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Aug 15 2020
Women first competed in the World Championships in 1980 at the tournament held in Madrid, Spain. Suzuko Okamura became the first individual kata world champion. Her victory was the start of total dominance of the kata events by the Japanese women. From 1980 to 2004 they remained undefeated in the event. Arguably the greatest of …
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Aug 09 2020
Karate is 99% feeling. Yoshimi Inoue For many, Yoshimi Inoue’s name will be associated with the many great kata champions he coached, that included Mie Nakayama, Atsuko Wakai and Ryoko Abe. However, Inoue was more than a great coach. He was a martial artist first and foremost. What made him a unique and successful coach …
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Aug 09 2020
I realised that I cannot live without Karate. That is my source of energy. Suzuko Okamura-Hamasaki Suzuko Okamura holds a special place in tournament Karate history. She was the first Women’s World Champion in kata. She ushered in a dominance of the kata event for over twenty years by Japanese women that lasted from 1980 …
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Nov 25 2019
25 November On 25 November 1948 the founder of the Okinawan Karate style Uechi-ryu, Kanbun Uechi, died aged 71. Born into a family of farmers, in 1897 Uechi fled his native Okinawa to avoid conscription into the Japanese army. He travelled to Fuzhou (Fuchou) in the Fukien Province of China. Looking to learn martial arts, …
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