25 April
On 25 April 1888, Chojun Miyagi, the founder of Goju-Ryu Karate, was born in Naha, Okinawa.
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 Kanazawa, Keinosuke Enoeda, and Hiroshi Shirai. The demonstration took place at Poplar Town Hall, London.
On 26 April 1994, Kyokushin Karate founder, Mas Oyama, died of cancer, in Tokyo, Japan. He was succeeded as the head of the International Karate Organisation (IKO), by Shokei Matsui.
On 26 April 2014, the 20th anniversary of Mas Oyama’s death occurred. Russian, Tariel Nikoleishvili attempted the 100-Man Kumite Challenge in front of IKO–1 head, Shokei Matsui, and also Francisco Filho and Artur Hovhannisyan. He completed the challenge in 3 hours 21 minutes. He won 64 fights; drew 27 flights; and lost 9 fights.
28 April
On 28 April 2020, Yoshinao Nanbu died. This was following a long illness. He was survived by his wife Sonia and daughter Sume.
Nanbu was one of the most talented martial artists of his generation. As a pioneer of Shito-Ryu Karate in Europe, his desire to test the authenticity of his Karate, won him many admirers and influenced the likes of Dominique Valera.
A lifelong martial artist, Nanbu was never afraid to walk his own path. His self-reflection led to the development of Sankukai and Nanbudo, both of which have developed a following worldwide.
30 April
On 30 April 1957, the British Karate Federation (BKF) held its very first grading. Two students were graded.
On 30 April 2009, Hideki Okamoto died from stomach cancer. By the time of his death, he had been promoted to 8th Dan.
A graduate of the JKA Instructors Course, he was responsible for developing Shotokan Karate in Africa and the Middle East. Considered a phenomenal teacher, he was known for teaching self-defence techniques.
1 May
On 1 May 1949, the Japan Karate Association(Nippon Karate Kyokai) was formed. Kichinosuke Saigo was the first President of the association, with Isao Obata the first Chairman.
On 1 May 1953, Fujikiyo Omura was born Shizuoka, Japan. He began learning Karate at high school in 1970.
Known for the speed and dynamism of his Karate, Omura is a former JKA All Japan and World Champion. He is a much respected and in-demand instructor and is a frequent guest instructor on gasshuku held around the world. He has also helped to build a healthy Shotokan Karate following in Thailand, where Thai Boxing, Taekwondo, and badminton are the dominant activities in the country.
On 1 May 1997, Yoshizo Machida established JKA Brazil. He helped put Shotokan Karate on the Brazilian martial arts map. He did this mainly through conducting seminars and training courses and running classes at his dojo.
On 1 May 2015, Yoshimi Inoue died from cancer. For many, his name will be associated with the many great kata champions he coached, that included Mie Nakayama, Atsuko Wakai, Antonio Diaz, Rika Usami, 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 was that he saw competition as being just one part of Karate. He still stressed the martial aspects of Karate in his day-to-day training.
On 1 May 2019, JKAWF India Kolkata invited Fujikiyo Omura to teach at the 2019 JKA Kolkata Goodwill Karate Camp and Championships. On the first day of the event, it was his 66th birthday. He was presented with a three-tier cake, with over 500 people singing Happy Birthday to him. For the first three days of the event, he conducted the training camp. The last two days saw the Goodwill Championships take place. The event completed on 5 May
2 comments
Hi Patrick. Thank you once again for helping history alive. One question, if I may. You mention 1949 as the founding year of the JKA. May 1949 is indeed significant; however, some identify the founding year as 1948 – Nishiyama, for example. Also, while the JKA website use to reference 1949, it now states 1948. Any info you might have that sheds light on this would be most appreciated. Maybe the decision was taken in 1948 but became official in 1949? There might be some other explanation?
Author
Hello Barry. Thanks for your feedback. I got the information for “A Shotokan Karate Book of Dates” written by Clive Layton and Michael Randall. I am happy to be corrected. I will do some further research into this.