Local karatekas get knowledge kick

Members of the SVG Shotokan Karate Club and the Seishin Karate Club were recent recipients of instructions from chair and chief instructor of the St Lucia Shotokan Karate Association, Patrick Edward.

A one-day session on basic ideas on kihons and katas took place at the St Vincent Grammar School’s auditorium. The session involved detailed analysis of the moves and the various movements in the kata.

Explaining the purpose of his visit, Edward told SEARCHLIGHT, “What we are trying to do in IKD (International Karate Daigaku ) is part of the Caribbean unity to pass on the knowledge that we have”.

In addition, Edward noted that students of karate get bored with listening to one instructor. He reasoned, “Instructors here can say one thing a thousand times and I say it once and they accept it more”.

Edward reasoned that the Caribbean’s talent in the sport can be maximized if the knowledge and resources are pooled.  

“We Caribbean people are very fortunate to have good technical ability and it just needs some fine-tuning, so that we can become world class performers and that is what we are looking forward to… We stand a good chance to compete at that world class level … Karate is now an Olympic sport and if we can harness our resources together, we will achieve more,” Edward proffered.                      

The Caribbean has 14 countries affiliated to the IKD.