Stevenage Karate Club Instructors
All instructors and coaches teaching at the Stevenage clubs have to obtain an Enhanced Certificate from the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), are fully Insured & Qualified to teachBeginners
The idea of joining our club to start-out in JKA Shotokan Karate may seem a bit daunting to most aspiring martial artists...Read more
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Affiliation
Stevenage Karate Club is proud to be affiliated to the Japan Karate Association.
Sensei Ohta
Sensei Yoshinobu Ohta
7th Dan JKA
Chief Instructor JKA England
Sensei Phil Cooper
3rd Dan JKAAssistant Instructor, SKC
Philip first became interested in the martial arts after reading an advert for Kung Fu. He went along and although really enjoyed it, the club only met once a week. Shortly afterwards, learning of a karate club that trained at the school he was attending, he joined here, gaining his first kyu shortly before leaving to study at Birmingham University.
The University club had a strong membership, strong members and strong spirit. It was that attitude towards training and the excellent teaching of Sensei Syd Gordon, that pushed Phil harder and gained his black belt in Spring 1994.
Sometime later, the Stevenage club was recommended, as the level was said to be good and the training hard. Thinking it was worth a look he went along. Phil had found a club where the training was hard and serious and had good direction from a great instructor, Derek Oakley, who guided Phil through his 2nd Dan at the end of 1999.
An opportunity to live and work in Japan proved too good to turn down, but on his return he went back to Stevenage Karate Club. Sensei Derek had needed to move away and it was now being led by the equally good Sensei Tom Peebles.
The club has remained very strong and has a high level of instruction, with Sensei Tom being instrumental in helping Phil gain his 3rd Dan in the Summer of 2005.