karate styles for competition?

[tdiedwards]

Hi,

Are some styles of karate more suitable for competition than others?

If i wanted to learn karate with competitions being my priority and self-defence being more of a spin-off benefit, which styles should i consider/ avoid?

Also, has anyone heard of SHOTON karate? Have seen a club bearing the name but can't find any info about it, unless it's an alternative name for shotokan?

Thanks for your advice,

Tim

[Shotokan-kez]

Never heard of shoton i do shotokan i have never competed so i cant really advise on which style would be best to compete with.

Kez xx

[cathal]

What type of competitions are you looking to get into? For example flashy, high gymnastic? Or perhaps just fighting and that's it.

[P.A.L]

In karate , competition divides in two sections,

1- kata (Form) , in which you compete in forms individually or as a team member

2- Kumite (sparring)

if you wanna go all the way, then WKF (world karate federation) is the biggest organization and if karate finds its way to Olympics game most likely WKF will represent karate

there are 4 major karate style which you can choose and be safe (almost accepted everywhere and every competition)

1-shotokan

2-Goju Ryu

3-Shito Ryu

4-Wado Ryu

if you are planning for Kumite competition then Shotokan is the most adopted system, for Kata i would say shito Ryu is the most suited

here is a kata list

SCHEDULE OF W.K.F. COMPULSORY (SHITEI) KATA

Goju

Seipai

Saifa

Shoto

Jion

Kanku Dai

Shito

Bassai Dai

Seienchin

Wado

Seishan

Chinto

MAJOR KATA LIST OF THE

WORLD KARATE FEDERATION

GOJU-RYU KATAS WADO-RYU KATAS

1. Sanchin 1. Kushanku

2. Saifa 2. Naihanchi

3. Seiyunchin 3. Seishan

4. Shisochin 4. Chinto

5. Sanseru 5. Passai

6. Seisan 6. Niseishi

7. Seipai 7. Rohai

8. Kururunfa 8. Wanshu

9. Suparimpei 9. Jion

10. Tensho 10. Jitte

SHOTOKAN KATAS

1. Bassai-Dai 12. Jion

2. Bassai-Sho 13. Sochin

3. Kanku-Dai 14. Nijushiho Sho

4. Kanku-Sho 15. Goju Shiho-Dai

5. Tekki - Shodan 16. Goju Shiho-Sho

6. Tekki - Nidan 17. Chinte

7. Tekki - Sandan 18. Unsu

8. Hangetsu 19. Meikyo

9. Jitte 20. Wankan

10. Enpi 21. Jiin

11. Gankaku

SHITO-RYU KATAS

1. Jitte 22. Naifanchin Shodan

2. Jion 23. Naifanchin Nidan

3. Jiin 24. Naifanchin Sandan

4. Matsukaze 25. Aoyagi (Seiryu)

5. Wanshu 26. Jyuroku

6. Rohai 27. Nipaipo

7. Bassai Dai 28. Sanchin

8. Bassai Sho 29. Tensho

9. Tomari Bassai 30. Seipai

10. Matsumura Bassai 31. Sanseiru

11. Kosokun Dai 32. Saifa

12. Kosokun Sho 33. Shisochin

13. Kosokun Shiho 34. Kururunfa

14. Chinto 35. Suparimpei

15. Chinte 36. Hakucho

16. Seienchin 37. Pachu

17. Sochin 38. Heiku

18. Niseishi 39. Paiku

19. Gojushiho 40. Annan

20. Unshu 41. Annanko

21. Seisan 42. Papuren

43. Chatanyara Kushanku

[tdiedwards]

Hi,

thanks for that great info everyone.

i like kata, but for competition i'd like to fight. just fighting would probably come before high gymnastics. i'm not sure this 31 year old is ever going to be very gymnastic but competative in a fight? i hope so. i'm short and fast if that makes much difference in choosing a style? my usual tactic from silat was try to get inside with a punch (i kept hurting my toes too! i hate front kicks:) )

i remember once reading about a style called......sorry i have to try to spell it phonetically.....KEE-O-KA-SHIN-KAY or similar. it's a full contact style. does full contact just mean more focus on sparring in training?

Thanks loads,

Tim

[cathal]

That is Kyokushin-Kai, or Kyukushin. Full contact arts like that mean that when you punch, you're actually punching someone. In this case a fellow student, senior student, or instructor.

Short and fast well that can be many arts. A few short people I know go for punching arts like Kempo and Boxing. Then again you could go for a grappling art like Jiu-Jitsu, or Judo. I'd recommend checking out a few local schools to "try them on".

[KarateK]

I have to say I dont think my style is very useful in some tournaments. The katas look great but we are used to sparring purely for technique, light combat.

[Shui Tora]

Hey, thanks P.A.L for the list of Kata, i was trying to look for those, but couldn't find them on the site!

Cheers! Out of those 21, I can do 12 of them! Cool!

[Sensei Mark]

The Style of Kyokushin Karate

The Japanese refer to Mas Oyama's Kyokushin karate as kenka karate, meaning "brawling" or "brutal" karate. But Mas Oyama tells his students "Kenka karate ja-nai! Budo karate da!" which translates to "This is not brawling karate!

It's budo karate!

One look at a Kyokushin karate tournament reveals the answer. Kyokushin karate fighters in Knockdown style tournaments are among the fiercest in the world.

Many Kyokushin Karate students consider themselves modern day Samurai, by following Mas Oyama's teachings encompassed the Budo / Bushido fighting spirit and attitude.

This spirit which is seen in demanding training sessions, gradings & tournaments is very evident of this.

At World level competitions there are no weight classes; a fight ends only when one fighter proves beyond doubt his superiority, which can mean his opponent may be flat on the mat and may need to be carried away on a stretcher.

Kyokushin Karate is Power Karate!

Why does Sosai Oyama refer to it as "budo karate"? Perhaps because kyokushin fighters personify the budo (warrior) concept better than any other karate stylists.

Through his budo karate, Sosai Oyama has indeed revived the Japanese spirit in terms of the positive characteristics of bushido, the " way of the warrior," which was so much of the culture of feudal Japan.

In a modern world of peace and unification, many have forgotten this ancient code and see no need for the old warrior ethic but in a time when it is no longer necessary to carry a sword for personal protection, the discipline of budo recreates in the hearts of its followers the do-or-die attitude of living life by the unspoken law of the sword.

And that law is: Be prepared to sacrifice.

Always remember that all Karate-ka, whether black belt or beginner who is totally ignorant to the teachings of Karate, train in the same dojo & on the same floor. All practice the same techniques and aspire toward the same ideals. Therefore, all are governed by the same requirements of etiquette.

[tdiedwards]

The Style of Kyokushin Karate

The Japanese refer to Mas Oyama's Kyokushin karate as kenka karate, meaning "brawling" or "brutal" karate. But Mas Oyama tells his students "Kenka karate ja-nai! Budo karate da!" which translates to "This is not brawling karate!

It's budo karate!

One look at a Kyokushin karate tournament reveals the answer. Kyokushin karate fighters in Knockdown style tournaments are among the fiercest in the world.

Many Kyokushin Karate students consider themselves modern day Samurai, by following Mas Oyama's teachings encompassed the Budo / Bushido fighting spirit and attitude.

This spirit which is seen in demanding training sessions, gradings & tournaments is very evident of this.

At World level competitions there are no weight classes; a fight ends only when one fighter proves beyond doubt his superiority, which can mean his opponent may be flat on the mat and may need to be carried away on a stretcher.

Kyokushin Karate is Power Karate!

Why does Sosai Oyama refer to it as "budo karate"? Perhaps because kyokushin fighters personify the budo (warrior) concept better than any other karate stylists.

Through his budo karate, Sosai Oyama has indeed revived the Japanese spirit in terms of the positive characteristics of bushido, the " way of the warrior," which was so much of the culture of feudal Japan.

In a modern world of peace and unification, many have forgotten this ancient code and see no need for the old warrior ethic but in a time when it is no longer necessary to carry a sword for personal protection, the discipline of budo recreates in the hearts of its followers the do-or-die attitude of living life by the unspoken law of the sword.

And that law is: Be prepared to sacrifice.

Always remember that all Karate-ka, whether black belt or beginner who is totally ignorant to the teachings of Karate, train in the same dojo & on the same floor. All practice the same techniques and aspire toward the same ideals. Therefore, all are governed by the same requirements of etiquette.

This sounds like the kind of training regime I could like. Is there a Kyokushin dojo in Birmingham, UK?

Thanks,

Tim