Karate master has all the right moves

Vincent Kennard, 63, dreams of opening a karate school in Amanzimtoti.

He plans to teach a rare type of karate, Okami Sento, that originated in Okinawa, Japan and encompasses the complete art form rather other than sport karate. With almost 40 years of experience in the art of karate, Vincent dreams of shares his talents with others.

“I want to bring that to the children and adults who would like to get to know the art of karate. At the same time teach more people to be more mobile and have confidence. Karate teaches children to have better physical co-ordination, proper breathing techniques, balance and respect and good self discipline. Its a wholesome way of life and I think that more people will benefit from learning and understanding the core values.”

He believes that people could benefit greatly from the technique of Okami Sento karate.

“The karate that I’m used to is more reality based, where you apply the techniques in real life. Most karate that is offered is sport karate, however it doesn’t have application in real life. I was more interested in the application of karate and most people believe that it doesn’t work but there are a lot of different styles and techniques. I felt that with the increase in crime rate and security being need more now, that practical karate is needed. This type of karate is rare in South Africa which is why more people tend to follow other fighting styles such as mixed martial arts.”

Vincent represented KwaZulu-Natal in a national tournament in 2019 and made the national team for 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic halted the sport. He is also a fifth Dan. The dan ranking system is used by many Japanese, Okinawan, and martial art organisations to indicate the level of a person’s ability within a given system.

“I train twice a week at a gym and twice a day at my studio at home. I also follow a fairly strict diet which doesn’t consist of meat. Karate teaches people to respect nature, people and animals. I obtained my first black belt in 1975 and I assisted in developing a combat karate.”

His lessons start from ages six upwards. For more information, call 072-446-4193.

ALSO READ: Amanzimtoti karateka to compete at SA champs

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