2016 has been an absolutely stellar year for the Steyn Karate Dojo in Potchefstroom. This Dojo is affiliated to the World Shotokan Karate-do Federation (WSKF) under the leadership of Hitoshi Kasuya Sensei (8th Dan) and they report directly to Michael Dukas Sensei (7th Dan) who is not only the chief instructor of WSKF South Africa but has recently been appointed as WSKF representative for the African continent and vice-president of WSKF international.

Stephan and Zilla Steyn are the Dojo heads and owners of Steyn Dojo (WSKF Potchefstroom). They started the Dojo in 2014 when they inherited it from the late Reon du Plooy Sensei. Since then, they have not looked back and have kept growing in numbers and quality. According to Stephan, the Dojo has grown to three times its original size since 2014 and, according to their performance in 2016, it is not only the growth of their dojo members that they are proud of. ‘Taking a look at the highlights of 2016, it is impossible to rank them from most to least important’, says Zilla. In 2016, Steyn Dojo had two students (Zoné Knoetze and Brandon Shepherd) who received their provincial colours and two others, (Alexandra and Paula Correia) who were awarded their 1st Dan (Shodan), one (Zoné Knoetze) 2nd Dan (Nidan) and two 4th Dans (Yondan) (Zilla and Stephan Steyn) by Kasuya and Dukas Senseis at the National Grading.

At the WSKF Development Championship in September, Steyn Dojo brought home numerous medals in the different categories, with the highlight being that of Alexandra Correia winning the under 21 female free-fighting (Kumite) division. The WSKF Development Championship is a bi-annual tournament, based on traditional Shotokan karate rules, where all the WSKF Dojos across South Africa compete in the different formats of a karate tournament (i.e. kata, Kumite and unison kata). Furthermore, Steyn Dojo members also won the Junior Unison kata division at the WSKF Development Championships. The team members, Ruan Blume, Marco Botha and Wiehan Jonker had a year to remember as they also competed in the Karate Super League (KSL) throughout the year. The KSL is a well-organised all-style tournament that is organised by former national squad karate members, granting karateka the opportunity to compete across the country in a friendly, yet professional environment. In this regard, the Junior Unison Kata team from Steyn Dojo received the following results during the 2016 KSL: Bronze (Cheetah Challenge in Bloemfontein), Silver (Bulls Challenge in Pretoria) and Gold (Lions Challenge in Johannesburg). At the time of publication, Steyn Dojo is still awaiting the overall results of the League as to where the boys ended in the League table. Brandon Shepherd, a member of the NWU karate team competed in the University Sport South Africa’s (USSA) National Karate Championships where he won gold medals in all four his divisions and went on to represent South Africa in the Student World Championships in Portugal later in 2016.

The annual year-end function and award ceremony of the Dojo was held on Saturday, 26 November. All members were invited and special guests, such as Marius Jordaan Sensei (6th Dan and senior instructor of WSKF South Africa) and Jaco du Plooy Sensei (3rd Dan and son of the late Reon du Plooy Sensei) handed out the trophies to make it even more special for those attending. The Dojo trophies are based on personal development and the basic principles of karate (character, sincerity, effort, etiquette and self-control) that we strive towards in our dojo. The Reon du Plooy Trophy is awarded to the student who embodies all of these principles and teaches them to others.

The recipients of these awards were:

Ruan Blume (character), Ruan van den Berg (sincerity), Horatio Carson (effort), Berdine Blume (etiquette), Arno Botha (   self-control) and Brandon Shepherd (Reon du Plooy trophy).

Those athletes who excelled in the competition arena were awarded the titles of Best Junior and Senior, Male and Female awards.

These included:

Isabella Correia (best junior female), Wiehan Jonker (best junior male), Alexandra Correia (best senior female) and Brandon Shepherd (best senior male).

Finally, a special award was given to each of the parents who, along with Zilla and Brandon, took the initiative to start an adult class where they could train in the company of other adults and start their karate career.

Stephan and Zilla are very grateful for all the support received throughout the year and would like to thank all their members, parents of the students and WSKF South Africa for giving them the opportunity to train and teach karate.

Steyn Dojo (WSKF Potchefstroom) is open to anyone who wishes to start karate and develop their self-confidence in a controlled and respected environment. Stephan and Zilla decided on the Japanese word kazoku (family) to represent their approach to karate and, according to their members, it appears that they are succeeding in creating such a support base and environment to train karate.

For any enquiries regarding training times, please contact them at potchsamurai@gmail.com or 076 112 0479 (Zilla Steyn) or 072 283 9967 (Stephan) or visit www.wskf.co.za.