This week in history (14 May – 20 May)

On 15 May 1947 Steve Cattle was born. Until his untimely death, aged only forty-seven, he was one of the longest practicing Shotokan practitioners in Britain. He was also a keen historian of Karate.

Nicknamed ‘Stumpy’ as he was only 5ft 6in, Cattle began training in Judo in 1961, eventually reaching the rank of 2nd Dan. He represented Britain at the 1967 World Student Games held in Japan.

However, it is for Karate that Cattle is best known. He began his Karate training in 1963 applying for membership with the British Karate Federation (BKF) at their York dojo. He moved to Liverpool to study Degree in Divinity. It was at this time he started training with Keinosuke Enoeda.

Cattle was selected to become a member of the Karate Union of Great Britain (KUGB) national team. He was a top competitor nationally and internationally, recognized for his accurate punching and great timing.

In the late 1980’s Cattle left the KUGB and joined Taiji Kase‘s World Karate Shotokan Karate Association (WKSA).

On 20 May 1964 the foreign affairs officer for the JKA, Kazuo Nagai, arrives in London as part of a feasibility tour of Europe. This is for sending JKA instructors to teach in Europe.

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On 20 May 1989 Gōgen Yamaguchi, a student of Goju-ryu Karate founder Chojun Miyagi, died. He is responsible for the growth and popularity of Goju-ryu Karate.

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