Peterborough Shinboku Karate Club About Us Page

SHOTOKAN KARATE HISTORY

SUPREME MASTER GICHIN FUNAKOSHI

Gichin Funakoshi is widely considered to be the father of modern day karate due to him introducing the Okinawan art to Japan. Funakoshi was born the son of a samurai in 1870 , in Naha City, Okinawa. At the age of 11 he began to study with the two great masters of the time, Azato and Itosu. He became so proficient that he took up all the major styles of Karate in Okinawa. In 1913 he became chairman of the Okinawan Shobu kai and in 1916 gave a demonstration to the Butokuden in Kyoto, Japan. In 1922 he moved to Japan and eventually merged all the Okinawan Styles into Karate-do, this method became known as Shotokan, literally meaning the clan of the house of Shoto, Shoto being Master Funakoshi’s pen name for his poetry he wrote. He passes away at the age of 88 in 1957.

MASTER MASATOSHI NAKAYAMA

Masatoshi Nakayama was one of Funakoshi’s senior students eventually attaining the rank of 9th Dan Black Belt. He was one of the founding members of the Japan Karate Association (JKA) in 1948 and was a key figure in developing karate into an international sport as well as an art form. It is said that Funakoshi brought the art of Karate from Okinawa to the Japanese and Nakayama carried out Funakoshi’s dream of sending qualified instructorsaround the world to propagate the art of karate. Nakayama was Chef instructor of the JKA until his death in 1987.

MASTER CHARLES MACK

Charles Mack took up the art of Karate in Japan whilst studying Judo. During his seven year stay he was the first person to be graded to the rank Of Black belt from the UK by Sensei Nakayama in the art of Karate. He formed The International Shotokan Karate Association with the blessing of Master Nakayama and the JKA, and was requested to form a branch of the Shinboku Association in Britain. The word Shinboku translated means “Goodwill” and the object of the Shinboku movement is to bring about a bond of goodwill between people through the practice of Shotokan Karate. He lives and teaches in London holding regular courses and gradings. He is currently a 7th Dan at Karate, a 6th Dan at Judo and a 6th Dan at Jujitsu.

ALL PETERBOROUGH SHINBOKU BLACK BELTS

Shaun Kisby 5th Dan , Andy Kisby 4th Dan, Rob Tyler 3rd Dan and Mark Nightingale 2nd Dan formed the Peterborough Shinboku Karate Club in August 1997 due to the closing down of the then British Sugar Karate Club hall and subsequently the Factory. They had been training there since 1981 with numerous styles before eventually joining the British Shotokan Karate Association in 1986 under the guidance of Sensei Charles Mack 7th Dan. Since then they have been training at the Grove Community Centre in Woodston, Peterborough, holding regular beginner to 1st Kyu gradings, courses and inviting Sensei Mack himself to conduct all Dan gradings in Peterborough. They currently have 35 Black Belts graded by Sensei Mack that can trace there ancestry back to the Supreme Master Funakoshi.

Chief Instructors

Shaun Kisby 5th Dan

Shaun started his karate training, after being introduced to the art by his older brother Andy at the age of 11. During his teenage years he was selected to fight for the B.A.S.K.A Junior England squad and was trained by Shihan Sensei Greg Wallace 8th Dan attending training in Bow in London. He competed with the Renshinkai A team and won many trophies as a junior. Since that time he has won the Peterborough, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire and Bedfordshire Opens Championships on numerous occasions and won a bronze medal in the English Open Championships in Ilkeston in 2003 and a Bronze in the European Martial Arts Open Southern Series in 2004.He has fought the former world kickboxing champion Jason Ross on three separate occasions, and been victorious in all three fights.

Andy Kisby 4th Dan

Andy stated his karate training, whilst working at British Sugar in Peterborough where a small club started in 1981.During a Karate competition in the early eighties Fighting the British champ he freakishly damaged his knee ligament resulting in him taking time of from training. Since that time he has made a full recovery and has been graded through the ranks by Sensei Charles Mack 7th Dan to Black Belt 4th Dan. He teaches and trains regularly in Peterborough and is well known for his love of push ups, star jumps and horse riding stance (Kiba dachi) much to the joy of the rest of the class!

Rob Tyler 4th Dan

Rob started his karate training in the mid eighties at the local Renshinkai karate club before eventually joining the Peterborough Shinboku karate club. He has competed in many competitions in the past in free fighting (kumite) and Kata and won the Peterborough, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire titles. He is often known as the joker of the pack and once had a crucial point deducted whilst fighting Shaun in the Lincolnshire Open for showboating and trying to give him a kiss. He is a crucial part of the senior instructors not only with his technical skills but his talent of taking the micky, keeping everyone’s feet firmly on the ground.

Graham Fisher 3rd Dan

Graham as with Shaun and Andy began his Karate career at the British Sugar Renshinkai Karate Club in the early eighties. In 1985 in an inter club friendly at British Sugar (an event where half a dozen people had to go to hospital) Graham himself was probably the cause of most! He is renowned for his strength and power and is affectionately known as Granite Graham by the other instructors due to his love of roughing it up.” It is slightly unnerving when you catch someone with a kick or punch very heavily whilst sparring to have them smile back at you” says Shaun. He is an excellent instructor, who has the patients of a saint especially with the kids.

Club Black Belt Instructors

Club Black Belts

Mathew Mclaughlin 3rd Dan, Mark Nightingale 2nd Dan, Neil Cunnington 2nd Dan, Mandy Kisby 2nd Dan, Angela Allen 2nd Dan, Carlo Devita 2nd Dan, Tony Vecere 2nd Dan, Cip Esposito 2nd Dan, Brian Walden 2nd Dan, Arron Brewer 1st Dan, Stephan Pryke 1st Dan, Rebecca Allen 1st Dan, Aslam Islam 1st Dan, Joyce Bonin 1st Dan, Kimberley Cunnington 1st Dan, Adam Cunnington 1st Dan,
Steve Savage 1st Dan, Ian Savage 1st Dan, Mark Smith 1st Dan, Lewis Smith 1st Dan, Anthony Hylton 1st Dan, Jacob Logan 1st Dan, Brittany Abbott 1st Dan, Ian Smith 1st Dan, Francis Nespoli 1st Dan, Miranda Adams 1st Dan, Racheal Willerton 1st Dan & James Brindley 1st Dan

Junior Black Belts

Barrett Steward 1st Dan & Antonio Esposito 1st Dan

Guest Black Belt Instructor

Joe Wright 3rd Dan (E.M.A)

Grove Community Centre