SHOTOKAN KARATE

Shotokan

Shotokan karate has its origin with Master Gichin Funakoshi, born in 1868 in Okinawa, who developed the body of knowledge upon which modern day karate is based. Master Funakoshi migrated to the mainland and drew attention to the art of karate in the 1920s through a series of public demonstrations resulting in the widespread practice of karate at schools and universities in Japan. 

Master Funakoshi became a much sought-after teacher at many university clubs and dojos, however, after his death in 1957 'politics' intervened resulting in the creation of various splinter organisations such as the Japan Karate Association (head by the legendary Masatoshi Nakayama) and many others.

Soke Hirokazu Kanazawa, originally a member of the JKA, broke away from this organisation and established the Shotokan Karate International Federation in 1978. 

Prior to this, Soke Kanazawa's claim to fame was winning the highly regarded All Japan Karate Championship twice in a row in both kata and kumite in 1958 (and one kumite final with a broken wrist!). 

Soke Kanazawa was awarded his 10th dan in 2001 by the International Martial Arts Federation and is regarded by the karate world, irrespective of style, as one of its true living legends.  

Soke's legacy to world karate is a rich and deep syllabus aimed at encouraging a uniform and consistent standard across SKIF dojos worldwide, representing well over a million karateka. 

With SKIF now represented in over 130 countries, a member can walk into a SKIF dojo wherever it may be, and his/her rank will be recognized and be of a similar standard. 

Soke retired from active teaching in 2012, handing over the title of Kancho to his oldest son, Nobuaki Kanazawa. 

Kancho, apart from his technical excellence was a fearsome competitor in his day winning numerous world and national titles.

He continues his father's strong tradition of teaching and promoting the wonderful SKIF karate system. This includes seminars in Australia and Kancho is a regular visitor to the annual Shotokan Week held in a different State each year. Shotokan Week usually culminates in a dan grading (i.e. 1st dan and above), an event that it highly anticipated by those students who have been put forward to attempt moving up to the next level by their instructors. 

Shihan Manabu Murakami is the Chief Instructor of SKIF and is an outstanding karate exponent, being a world-class instructor and an equally fearsome competitor in his day. Shihan Murakami won the SKIF world championship on three occasions and there is a memorable fight on YouTube where he is matched against Kancho Kanazawa in the 1994 SKIF World Championship held in Yokohama, Japan.

Shotokan in Australia

Australia has been a strong representative of SKIF for over 40 years and Shotokan Karate International Australia currently comprises forty-five clubs.

One of SKIA's most memorable moments was when Sensei Darren Brailey won the open men's 75kg+ sparring at the 9th World Cup held in Japan in 2006.

There were over 200 participants in this event representing around sixty countries. To say that the Australian team and its supporters had a melt-down as Sensei Darren scored the winning point is an understatement.  

It put the rest of the world on notice that despite our small population, SKIA is a force to be taken seriously! Soke Kanazawa was particularly complimentary about the high standard of karate attained in Australia that year.

Apart from Sensei Darren, several gold medals have been won by other fine Australian competitors at SKIF world championships over the years.

Requirements to operate a SKIA dojo

Dojo:  Endorsement by the SKIA Executive and Club registration.

Instructor:  Minimum rank of 3rd dan (wherever possible); completed a recognized sport accreditation; have insurance cover; and hold a current senior first-aid certificate.

Members:  Join SKIA; pay annual membership fee and insurance premium; and a doctor's letter (if over 40 years old at D.Y.S.K.C.).

A feature of SKIA is the quality and depth of our pool of instructors. We are lucky enough to have two 8th dans (Sensei Brian Cox and Sensei Zivko Delevski) and many

other high calibre instructors and exponents across the ranks.

Sensei Terry Choi, an excellent karateka in his own right, is our current president and is constantly seeking ways to improve the way SKIA operates. 

In summary, Shotokan Karate is alive and well in Australia and DYSKC is a proud example of this .... come and see for yourself!