It's been a fantastic year for Northstowe Karate Club – a year of growth, hard work, and community spirit. From packed classes to national and international training opportunities, our students and instructors have achieved a huge amount together.
We've had a total of 70 unique students train with us this year, with over 40 attending at least twice. Our Wednesday classes are full most sessions – thank you to everyone who attends and supports our club.
We held a total of 70 sessions this year. The student with the highest attendance – an impressive 60 sessions – is Celeste. Well done! In joint second place with 49 sessions each, we have:
It has been fantastic to see you all training so hard. I've seen some massive improvements.
Northstowe Karate Club attended four gradings this year at Cambridge Karate Dojo and Zanshin North Herts Shotokan Karate Academy. We had 11 passes in March, 9 and 4 passes at Cambridge/Zanshin over the summer, and 19 passes in December – a total of 43 grading passes. Well done everyone 🙂 🎉.
There have been several national and international events this year.
In May, Mitali and I attended the JKA WF England Spring Camp with Oishi Takeshi sensei (9th Dan), Chief Instructor of JKA; Kawasoe Masao sensei (8th Dan), Chief Instructor of JKA WF England; and Naito Takeshi sensei (8th Dan), Chief Instructor of JKA Italy. I earned my D Instructor, Judge, and Examiner qualifications.
In November I attended a training course in Windsor with Kawasoe Masao sensei (8th Dan), Chief Instructor of JKA WF England, where I earned my C Instructor and Judge qualifications. I also attended the JKA Malta Gasshuku with Sensei Shimizu (6th Dan, JKA Honbu), Sensei Roy Tomlin MBE, Sensei Ken Hori, and Sensei Dario Chircop (5th Dan, JKA Malta). Training on the beach was a unique experience.
In 2026 we’ll continue focusing on strong basics, confidence, and community. We’re excited to welcome new students, support our current members on their karate journey, and take part in more national and international events.
Events for 2026 (including grading dates) are now on the JSKE website.
Thank you to every student, parent, committee member, and supporter who makes our club such a positive place to train.