ABOUT IPSWICH KARATE
Who We Are - Our Origins
Our world class chief instructor, combined with the world's most respected karate organisation make Ipswich Karate one of Australia's leading Karate schools. Please read on to learn more about the background of our school, our style and the organisation that we belong to.
Chief Instructor
Our Sensei, Jim Dodrill grew up in the tough working class northern suburbs of Dublin, Ireland, migrating to Australia with his parents in the late 1970s. He commenced karate training in 1980 while still in high school. After several years in the Shorinjy Ryu style, he made the switch to the Shotokan style.
Over the years since, Sensei Jim has trained with various Shotokan karate instructors including Sensei Frank Nowak, Australian Karate pioneer, the late Sensei Mike Connolly and he currently trains under the legendary instructor, Sensei Keith Geyer.
Sensei Jim has also been a keen karate competitor. He was won several state and national championships in kata and kumite and won 1st place in kata in the 1992 IKA World Championships.
In 1996, while pursuing one of his other sporting passions, Sensei Jim had fall while rockclimbing which resulted in a leg so badly fractured that the hospital surgeons initially considered amputation. After several operations, the insertion of many plates and pins and more than 12 months of intense physiotherapy, he was able to return to karate.
It has always been important for Sensei Jim to learn from the best possible sources. He has trained with many famous karate champions and instructors such as Naka Sensei (Japan), Mori Sensei (Japan), Osaka Sensei (Japan), Kanazawa Sensei (Japan), Terry O'Neill (UK), Luca Valdesi (Italy), Davide Benetello (Italy), Bill Wallace (USA), Benny Urquidez (USA). Several years working as a consultant in the security industry have also taught Sensei Jim many important lessons in real life defence situations.
Whether it be teaching self defence, traditional karate techniques or tournament karate, Sensei Jim now enjoys passing his knowledge and experience on to the next generation. He has coached several young competitors who have won state and national championships. Many others have gone on to be confident, respected and successful members of society thanks to their years of karate training.
Shotokan Karate
Shotokan is a style of karate, developed from earlier martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi and his son Yoshitaka (1906-1945). Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing karate through a series of public demonstrations, and by promoting the development of university karate club.
Shotokan is named after Funakoshi's pen name, Shoto, which means "pine waves" or "wind in the pines". In addition to being a karate master, Funakoshi was an avid poet and philosopher who would reportedly go for long walks in the forest where he would meditate and write his poetry. Kan means training hall, or house, thus Shotokan referred to the "House of Shoto".
Japan Karate Assoc.
We are proud members of the JKA-SKC Australasia. Affiliated to the Japan Karate Association, JKA-SKC is headed by a group of senior instructors including Sensei Keith Geyer and Sensei Stan Schmidt who all have an enormous amount of training experience gained at the Honbu (Headquarters) dojo of the JKA in Tokyo.
The Japan Karate Association is the most authoritative and by far the largest karate organisation in the world, the keeper of Karate's highest traditions. No other organisation approaches karate with greater intensity of purpose than we do, or maintains such a large and dedicated professional staff of highly trained full time instructors.
At the JKA, karate is not merely a sport but is a martial art whose aim is the harmonizing of body and mind for balance, strength, perseverence, patience - for total confidence and self-mastery.
With a vast membership in over 100 countries, the JKA is the world's largest and most prestigious karate organisation. Recognised heir to the Shotokan karate tradition, it is the only legal karate entity officially recognized by the Japanese government as an association of members for the promotion of karate (Shadan Hojin).
More importantly, the JKA is the preserver of the soul and spirit of the art of kokufu-bunka-karate-do: karate based on the ancient Japanese tradition of Bushido (the way of the samurai). Our mission is to promote this way of karate throughout the world, ensuring that it remains true to the philosophical precepts upon which it was founded.
Secrets of the Strongest Karate in the World
JKA karate has remained essentially unchanged throughout its history. Each student learns each technique and tradition in its original and most powerful form. As a result, the JKA produces some of the strongest and most skillful karate-ka in the world.
There are a number of practical factors that make JKA karate different from other karate traditions. Here are some of the main ones:
JKA Karate Has Strong Roots - JKA karate is a unique refinement of the Shotokan style, one of the oldest and most traditional types of Okinawan karate. Since it descends directly from such "original" sources, it has developed from strong roots under- pinned by a long history and a great tradition.
JKA Karate Is Scientific and Is Constantly Being Improved - Every technique and movement in JKA karate is based on solid, scientific, physical movement theory. That's why we put such heavy focusfar more than any other organizationon kihon, the basic foundational techniques, and their proper form, angle and balance. The result speaks for itself: JKA karate is powerful, solid, stable, and smooth flowing; this has proven itself time and again in tournaments. Despite the excellence of JKA karate, however, it is constantly being improved.
JKA Is Devoted to the Practice of Karate - Unlike many other karate organizations, the JKA was not created as an organization whose major purpose is holding matches and tournaments. Though it does sponsor tournaments, its major focus is the practice of karate. Its purpose is the teaching of karate as a way of life.