DUNDEE KZN: JKA karate throws punches and kicks again
As the word 'karate' means 'unarmed' or 'empty handed', emphasis was laid on strengthening and training the hands and feet
Masks mandatory, screening required, and sanitizing a must. These are the daily checks and regulatory rules for the NKZN JKA karate dojos.
After more than two years and 611 days of lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Northern KwaZulu-Natal JKA region was finally visited again by the JKA 6th Dan, Johan La Grange Sensei, who is also the SAJKA karate chief instructor and technical director.
He not only came to review the standard of JKA karate within the region after a long period of ‘competitive’ inactivity, but also to evaluate candidates who wanted to grade to their next black belt level. Tradition dictates that a pre-grading and training session precedes the grading, and this was open to all red to black belts and a select few junior adult candidates who would be able to maintain the level of fitness and intensity that such a training session entails.
Notwithstanding the heat experienced in Newcastle on the Saturday (November 6), load-shedding and a lack of air-conditioning as a result, compounded by the obligatory wearing of masks, the karateka were not deterred from giving their best and proving their love and dedication to the sport of JKA karate.
The one-and-a-half-hour training session was packed with vital information the candidates had to remember for their grading, such as specific combinations synchronised to draw attention to the hips in both the use of- and the karateka’s understanding of how best to use them for maximum output.
As the word ‘karate’ means ‘unarmed’ or ’empty handed’, emphasis was laid on strengthening and training the hands and feet, the karateka’s weapons for both defence and attack. “Power, strength, stamina, speed and constant focus are required and need to be practiced daily,” said Johan La Grange Sensei.
Sensei Johan Swart, on behalf of NKZN JKA, said, “It is always an honour and a privilege to have Johan La Grange Sensei visit our region and to be able to participate in one of his training sessions, as his skills and knowledge of the art of JKA karate are invaluable to the karatekas and the Senseis, and are necessary for growth and overall improvement.”
More information regarding the grading candidates will be posted in the next edition of the newspaper.
For any information regarding class times and fees, please contact Sensei Johan Swart on 083 658 7157.
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