Defend yourself with jiu jitsu
Shunkenkan Ju-jitsu has been open since 2012, teaching self-defence to the community.
The club has moved around since its inception, starting in Florida then moving to Helderkruin before returning to the Florida CBD in Plaza Road next to the police offices.
The club has Florida police officer Adriaan van de Werken as sensei (instructor) and he teaches three classes.
The Little Samurai for children three to eight years old.
The junior class for children nine to fifteen years old and the senior class for members 16 years and older.
Adriaan has been training in Jiu Jitsu since 1997 and moved to the West Rand with his club from Polokwane.
Jiu Jitsu is a traditional martial arts that focuses on self defence, confidence building and discipline.
“We will teach you how to get yourself out of dangerous situations and how to handle yourself. Self defence is not about the size of your opponent but knowing what to do ad where to target to escape safely,” said Adriaan.
The martial art encourages power and strength in women because it is about momentum and balance, not brute strength.
“It is about pressure points, locks, breaks and throws. The martial arts follows the way of the samurai and how they did things in feudal Japan when it comes to technique. Hence it is suitable for children and adults,” said Adriaan.
The club now has 16 members and is accredited by the Martial Arts of South Africa (MASA).
“This is not like judo or karate where it’s just throws and technique. This sports is physical because it is a warrior art. We also do cage-fighting, stand-up and ground fighting. We do this in a controlled and safe environment,” said Adriaan.
Classes are on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Little Samurai classes start from 5pm to 5.30pm, junior classes start from 5pm to 5.45pm and senior classes are from 6pm to 7pm. For more information contact Adriaan on 081 325 8625 or JP on 081 708 1381.
