Feb 01 2023
A great thinker on the essence of Karate and how it should be taught, Motokuni Sugiura dedicated his life to Karate. As an instructor, he focused on developing strong basics. As the second Chief Instructor of the JKA he oversaw a turbulent period in their history. Motokuni Sugiura was born in Aichi, Japan, on 4 …
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Jan 30 2023
31 January On 31 January 1999 Keigo Abe resigned from the Matsuno faction of the JKA. Masatoshi Nakayama, the Chief Instructor of the JKA, died in 1987. Tokyo businessman, Nobuyuki Nakahara became the Chairman of the JKA. A number of instructors, led by Tetsuhiko Asai, disagreed with the decision. This led to a split in …
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Jan 27 2023
Alongside Stan Schmidt, Len Barnes, and Hugh Thomas, James Rousseau, was a pioneer of Karate in South Africa. He is largely responsible for establishing Okinawan Goju-Ryu in Europe. A very good teacher, he has been described as making simple things interesting and difficult things seem easy. James McGill Rousseau was born on 4 July 1944 …
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Jan 20 2023
A true karateka must exercise, self-control, be non-aggressive, and avoid confrontation. Kazuhiro Sawada A longtime member of the JKA (Japanese Karate Association), Kazuhiro Sawada has been at the forefront of helping to establish Shotokan Karate in Belgium. Like many of the JKA Masters of his generation, he is very technical. Kazuhiro Sawada was born on …
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Jan 04 2023
First be taught; learning comes later; Tomio Imarura Known for his quiet demeanour, Tomio Imamura has been described as a “brilliant technician“, known for his exceptional kumite. A two-time world champion, he is one of the best fighters of his generation. Tomio Imamura was born on 7 October 1958, in Kagoshima, Japan. Imamura attended Takushoku …
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Dec 05 2022
5 December On 5 December 1944, the founder of Ashihara Karate, Hideyuki Ashihara, was born in Hiroshima, Japan. He was a direct student of Kyokushin founder, Mas Oyama. Ashihara was considered a formidable fighter, and by 1966 he was an instructor of Kyokushin Karate at the organisation’s Hombu (headquarters). In 1987 Ashihara started showing the first signs of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). His condition gradually worsened and on 24 …
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Nov 28 2022
28 November On 28 November 1934 Frank Cope, a pioneer of British Shotokan Karate, was born in Liverpool. A long-time member of the KUGB (Karate Union of Great Britain) he would become one of the first Karate black belts in Britain. On 28 November 2009, the 9th Open Weight Kyokushin Championships were held in Paris. There were 166 …
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Oct 31 2022
31 October On 31 October 1993, Ray Dalke took early retirement from the University of California, Riverside, where he was a member of the Physical Education department. He did continue to help out, long after his leave date. As a coach, Dalke oversaw one of the most successful collegiate Karate programs in the United States. …
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Oct 24 2022
24 October On 24 October 1996, the High Court of Tokyo upheld an earlier decision regarding Mas Oyama’s last will. On 31 March 1995 Judge Atsushi Watanabe of the Tokyo Court of Family Affairs ruled that Oyama’s verbal will was invalid as it had not been signed by him, only by the witnesses. His family …
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Oct 10 2022
10 October On 10 October 1928, Shotokan Karate master, Hidetaka Nishiyama, was born. Nishiyama attended the renowned university, Takushoku, studying economics. In 1949 he was named the Captain of the Karate team, after joining earlier that year. In the early 1950s, Nishiyama was part of a group, including Masatoshi Nakayama and Isao Obata, selected to …
Permanent link to this article: http://findingkarate.com/wordpress/this-week-in-history-10-october-16-october/
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