Japan Karate Association
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The Japan Karate Association (or JKA; known in Japanese as Nihon Karate Kyokai, or sometimes just "kyokai" among karateka in Japan) is one of the primary and most influential shotokan karate organizations.
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[edit] JKA Origins
Gichin Funakoshi played a major role in the introduction of karate, originally from Okinawa, to Japan, adjusted to reduce injury and merged with approaches for athletic training. In the late 1940s some of his senior students (e.g. Isao Obata, Masatoshi Nakayama, Hidetaka Nishiyama) formed a special karate organization, dedicated to research, promotion, events management, and education. Gichin Funakoshi, even at 80 years old held a position equivalent to emeritus chief instructor. Masatoshi Nakayama was designated as the chief instructor. This was the Japan Karate Association (JKA), founded in 1949.[1][2].
JKA emerged from karate clubs at Japanese universities located within the Tokyo region. Most of these universities, however, distanced from the JKA during the 1950s. Takushoku University always kept strong ties with the JKA, being the the alma mater of many of the senior JKA instructors (e.g. Nakayama, Nishiyama, Okazaki, Asai, Kanazawa, Enoeda), responsible for the JKA consolidation during the 1960s and 1970s.[1][3]
General uneasiness on how karate was taught by the JKA instructors and disagreements on Funakoshi's funeral organization in 1957 motivated some of the senior karateka connected with Funakoshi but not associated with the JKA (e.g. Shigeru Egami, Genshin Hironishi, Tsutomu Ohshima) to form their own organizations (e.g. Shotokai, SKA). They claimed to practice shotokan karate closer to what Funakoshi taught. The JKA shotokan approach is also based on Funakoshi's karate but with significant adaptations introduced mostly by Masatoshi Nakayama, JKA chief instructor until his death in 1987.[1][4][5] Under the leadership of Masatoshi Nakayama a generation of respected instructors spread karate worldwide, guided from the JKA headquarters in Tokyo.[1][2]
Nakayama's books[6][7] are fundamental references on the shotokan karate as practiced at JKA. C. W. Nichol, in his classic book Moving Zen, describes the karate practice at the JKA's main dojo in Tokyo during the early 1960s, from his perspective as a westerner karate student from white to black belt.[8]
[edit] JKA Splinters
- In 1977, JKA instructor Hirokazu Kanazawa quit and formed his own organization, now known as Shotokan Karate-Do International Federation (SKIF).
- Following Nakayama's death in 1987, the JKA experienced a turbulent period, both at the Tokyo headquarters and worldwide. Taiji Kase and Hiroshi Shirai, senior JKA instructors in Europe quit to form the World Shotokan Karate-Do Academy. Taketo Okuda, JKA chief instructor in Brazil, quit to focus on his own organization, Butoku-kan.
- In 1990 a legal dispute started between two groups about the control of JKA. One group was lead by Asai Tetsuhiko, the other by Nakahara Nobuyuki. After several court rulings, the issue was ultimately settled by the Japanese Supreme Court on June 10, 1999, in favor of the Nakahara group, which included Masaaki Ueki and Masahiko Tanaka.[9] The other group, lead by Tetsuhiko Asai, JKA chief instructor after Nakayama, and including Keigo Abe and Mikio Yahara, left JKA to form other organizations: Japan Karate Shotorenmei (JKS), Japan Shotokan Karate Association (JSKA), and Karatenomichi World Federation (KWF), respectively.
- In 2007, the International Shotokan Karate Federation (ISKF), with headquarters in the US, led by Teruyuki Okazaki 10th dan, one of the most senior JKA instructors, quit his affiliation with JKA.
Because of these splinters there is today the notion of a JKA karate style, that is, karate which follows the JKA tradition to a large extent, but taught by instructors who are not officially affiliated with JKA, some of them former JKA instructors.
[edit] JKA Instructor Intern (kenshusei) Training Program
In 1956 the JKA started its instructor intern (kenshusei) training program at the main dojo of the JKA headquarters, in Yotsuya, Tokyo, built in 1955. The instructor's training program has promoted the consistency and quality control of the JKA training practices over the years, graduating some of the world greatest karateka (see list and note below).
[edit] JKA Instructor Training Graduates
| Instructor | Year of Graduation | Rank | Position |
| Mikami Takayuki | 1957 | 8th Dan | USA JKA/WFA Southern |
| Takaura Eiji | 1957 | ' | ' |
| Kanazawa Hirokazu | 1957 | ' | ' |
| Tsushima Toshio | 1958 | ' | ' |
| Yaguchi Yutaka | 1958 | 8th Dan | USA ISKF Mountain States |
| Ouchi Kyo | 1959 | ' | ' |
| Sato Masaki | 1959 | ' | ' |
| *Saito Shigeru | 1959 | ' | ' |
| Inaba Mitsue | 1960 | ' | ' |
| Kano Masahiko | 1960 | ' | ' |
| Watanabe Gunji | 1960 | ' | ' |
| *Ogata Kyoji | 1960 | ' | ' |
| Kisaka Katsuharu | 1961 | ' | USA |
| Nakaya Ken | 1961 | ' | ' |
| Ogawa Eiko | 1961 | ' | ' |
| Ueki Masaaki | 1961 | 8th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| *Enoeda Keinosuke | 1961 | 9th Dan | Deceased 29th March 2003. |
| *Miyazaki Satoshi | 1961 | 8th Dan | Deceased 31th May 1993. |
| *Mori Osamu | 1961 | ' | ' |
| *Takahashi Yoshimasa | 1961 | ' | ' |
| *Majima Kenshiro | 1962 | ' | ' |
| Sakai Ryusuke | 1962 | 7th Dan | ' |
| Shiro Asano | 1963 | 9th Dan | S.K.I.E.F Chief Instructor |
| Jitsuhara Shoji | 1963 | ' | ' |
| Ochi Hideo | 1963 | 8th Dan | JKA Germany. |
| Takahashi Yasuoki | 1963 | ' | ' |
| *Itaya Michihisa | 1963 | ' | ' |
| Oishi Takeshi | 1965 | ' | ' |
| *Tabata Yukichi | 1965 | ' | ' |
| Takashina Shigeru | 1966 | 8th Dan | USA JKA/WFA South Atlantic |
| Higashi Kunio | 1967 | ' | ' |
| Iida Norihiko | 1967 | ' | ' |
| Okamoto Hideki | 1967 | ' | Egypt |
| Takahashi Shunsuke | 1967 | 8th Dan | JKA Australia. |
| Yano Kenji | 1967 | ' | ' |
| Baba Isamu | 1970 | ' | ' |
| Horie Teruo | 1971 | ' | ' |
| Nishino Shuhei | 1971 | ' | ' |
| *Hayakawa Norimasa | 1971 | ' | ' |
| Kanegae Kenji | 1972 | ' | ' |
| Osaka Yoshiharu | 1972 | 8th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Sato Teruo | 1974 | ' | ' |
| Mori Toshihiro | 1975 | ' | ' |
| Imura Takenori | 1977 | 7th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Kurasako Kenro | 1977 | 7th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Kawawada Minoru | 1978 | 7th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Komaki Masaki | 1978 | ' | ' |
| Omura Fujikiyo | 1978 | 7th Dan | JKA Thailand. |
| Fukami Akira | 1979 | ' | ' |
| Kaneko Taneaki | 1979 | ' | ' |
| Sakata Masashi | 1979 | ' | ' |
| Abe Miwako | 1980 | ' | ' |
| Tsuchii Takayuki | 1980 | ' | ' |
| Yamamoto Hideo | 1980 | ' | ' |
| Ogura Yasunori | 1982 | 7th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Imamura Tomio | 1983 | 7th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Kashiwagi Nobuyuki | 1984 | ' | ' |
| Koike Tsuyoshi | 1984 | ' | ' |
| Yokomichi Masaaki | 1984 | ' | ' |
| Izumiya Seizo | 1986 | 6th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Shiina Katsutoshi | 1986 | 6th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Hanzaki Yasuo | 1987 | 6th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Nakamura Yoko | 1987 | ' | ' |
| Naka Tatsuya | 1989 | 6th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Noda Kenichi | 1990 | ' | ' |
| Taniyama Takuya | 1990 | 6th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| *Imai Hiromitsu | 1991 | ' | ' |
| Takahashi Satoshi | 1992 | 5th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Kobayashi Kunio | 1993 | 5th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Ogata Koji | 1994 | 5th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Walter Crockford | 1996 | 5th Dan | JKA Canada. |
| Ikenaga Atsushi | 1996 | ' | ' |
| Hirayama Yuko | 1998 | 4th Dan | HQ Secretariat |
| Okuma Koichiro | 1998 | 4th Dan | HQ Full-Time Instructor |
| Iwasawa Mayumi | 1998 | 3th Dan | HQ Secretariat |
| Aragaki Misako | 2003 | 3th Dan | HQ Secretariat |
| Ubukata Koji | 2003 | ' | ' |
| Yamada Satomi | 2004 | ' | ' |
| Nemoto Keisuke | 2004 | ' | ' |
| Okuie Satomi | 2004 | ' | ' |
| Kurihara Kazuaki | 2004 | ' | ' |
| Shimizu Ryosuke | 2004 | ' | ' |
| Kumeta Riki | 2007 | ' | |
| *Kunio Sasaki | 1979 | ' | ' |
* Instructor Deceased
[edit] Note
This list is incomplete. For instance, it does not include some members who were expelled or quit JKA:
Quit
Abe Keigo
Aramoto Nobuyuki
Asai Tetsuhiko
Inaba Tsuneyuki
Isaka Akito
Ishimine Minoru
Kagawa Masao
Kagawa Masayoshi
Kanayama Kyosho
Mizuno Yoshihisa
Naito Takashi
Shin Naomitsu
Tamon Penpa
Tanaka Chougo
Yahara Mikio
Yamaguchi Toru
Kanazawa Hirokazu
Kase Yasuharu
Kasuya Hitoshi
Katsumata (Suzuki) Yutaka
Kawazoe Masao
Shirai Hiroshi
Tatetsu Meicho
Asano Shiro
Kato Sadashige
The list at the JKA site (see external link), which includes most members who quit or were expelled, may also be incomplete. JKA has not included some former members who have completed the course and are not currently affiliated with JKA. In addition, during the litigation period between 1990 and 1999 each JKA faction held their own instructor's course. Currently, JKA does not recognise the graduates from the instructor's course led by the JKS (Japan Karate Shoto Renmei - held the name JKA as well between 1990 and 1999). Karateka such as Taketo Okuda (Japan, former JKA chief instructor in Brazil), Ennio Vezzulli (Brazil), Nigel Jackson (South Africa), Peté Pacheco (Portugal), Malcolm Fisher (Canada), Leon Montoya (Colombia), Richard Amos (UK, US) and others, are mentioned in karate forums as having completed the JKA instructor's course (or having had a substantial participation in it) but do not appear on the list of graduates as currently (2008) published in the JKA site.[10][11][12]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Cook, Harry (2001). Shotokan Karate: A Precise History. England: Cook.
- ^ a b JKA Early Years - JKA site (retrieved January 5, 2008)
- ^ Evans, Jon. The Battle for Olympic Karate Recognition Black Belt, Feb 1988 (retrieved January 10, 2008)
- ^ Noble, Graham. Master Funakoshi's Karate Dragon Times (retrieved on January 8th, 2008).
- ^ Hironishi, Genshin.The Darkest Moments of Karate-do Karate-do Shotokai Encyclopedia (retrieved January 10, 2008)
- ^ Nakayama, Masatoshi (1997). Dynamic Karate. Japan: Kodansha International.
- ^ Nakayama, Masatoshi (1997). Best Karate Vol 1 to Vol 11. Japan: Kodansha International.
- ^ Nichol, Clive (2001). Moving Zen: One Man's Journey to the Heart of Karate (Bushido - The Way of the Warrior). Tokyo & New York: Kodansha International. ISBN 978-4770027559.
- ^ JKA - Overcoming Challenges (1990-1999) (retrieved January 5, 2008)
- ^ Discussion on JKA instructor's course graduates I Forum Karate Underground(retrieved January 6, 2008)
- ^ Discussion on JKA instructor's course graduates IIForum Karate Underground (retrieved February 1, 2008)
- ^ Discussion on JKA instructor's course graduates Forum Karateca.net (retrieved January 6, 2008, in Portuguese)
