KYOKUSHINKAN INDONESIA: Postcard From Kancho Hatsuo Royama

Sosai (Great Master) Masutatsu Oyama was born in Korea in 1923 and became the founder of Japan's most renowned -- and the world's most widespread -- style of karate. From the age of 9, Mas Oyama learned Chinese Kenpo in Manchuria and followed into his teens by practicing Judo and boxing. Finally this led him to the practice of Okinawan karate, which ultimately served as the springboard for the creation of his own style, Kyokushin, or the "The Ultimate Truth." By the time Mas Oyama was 20, he had received his 4th dan in Okinawan karate and though tireless study eventually attained a 4th dan in Judo as well.

Among Mas Oyama's many accomplishments, he is perhaps best known for introducing tameshiwari or "stone breaking" into the practice of modern karate. Mas Oyama reasoned that through hard training he could condition his hands to be as powerful as a hammer. Since one could break stones with a hammer, he began the practice of learning how to break boards, bricks and stones with his bare hands. This incredible power he then translated directly into his theory of fighting karate, reasoning that if he could break stones, human bones would break beneath his blows as well. Perhaps his greatest contribution to Japanese karate, therefore, was the introduction and popularization of full-contact fighting karate. At the time he won Japan's largest tournament sponsored by Okinawa's Shotokan karate, he was often penalized for fighting too hard, resulting in frequent injuries to his opponents. It was this experience, perhaps above all other influences, that led to his creation of Kyokushin karate. After all, Mas Oyama believed, karate is a fighting art: Without taking it to its extreme by practicing to break the body of one's opponent (for application during real life and death struggle), one could never realize the true spiritual potential of karate.

Frustrated by society's opposition to his gathering strength, Mas Oyama at the age of 23, retreated to a remote spot in the mountains with the ambition of training more hours per day than he slept for three years. During this time he practiced by striking the few mountain trees around his cabin with his bare fists until those trees withered and died. He pressed twice his body weight 500 times per day, meditated under icy waterfalls, and fought in the night with the demons of bitter cold and isolation. Upon emerging from mountain training, it is said that Mas Oyama struck a telephone pole and left a clean imprint of his fist in the treated wood.

At the age of 27 convinced that he could not find another fighter in Japan who could match his power and skill, Mas Oyama began his famous battles with bulls to prove his strength and make the world realize the true power of his karate. In one famous bout in front of a movie camera, he battled an angry bull on a beach for 45 minutes, both he and the bull refusing to be beaten. Finally the bull tired, and Mas Oyama sliced one of his horns off with his shuto, or "knife-hand strike."

Mas Oyama opened his first dojo in Ikebukuro, Tokyo at the age of 30, and called it "Oyama Dojo." It was here that he took all that he had learned from the various styles that he'd practiced through the years, combined them with what he'd learned during the many thousands of hours of self-training and full-contact fighting, and created a new style of karate, which he called Kyokushin. In 1964, a new dojo in Ikebukuro became the world headquarters of the International Karate Organization, Kyokushinkaikan, which had over 12 million members in 133 countries at the time of his death.

Mas Oyama died of lung cancer in April of 1994, leaving to the world a legacy of the world's strongest karate.

Hatsuo Royama was born in Saitama, just north of Tokyo, in 1948. Inspired by a country-wide boom in popularity of celebrity fighters and wrestlers, he traveled to Ikebukuro at the age of 15 and entered Mas Oyama's legendary "Oyama Dojo" where his Kyokushin Karate was being born. Having trained there at the birthplace of Mas Oyama's Kyokushin, Royama was one of a very few of Mas Oyama's students to still be closely affiliated with Mas Oyama's organization from so close to the beginning all the way until Mas Oyama's death in 1994.

Royama rose to some notoriety when at the age of 25 he became champion of Kyokushin's 5th All Japan Tournament, and later when he defeated the American, Charles Martin, a giant who stood nearly a foot taller (about 30 cm) than himself, in the 1st World Open Karate Tournament in 1975. This young prodigy of Mas Oyama then went on to a historic finish in that 1st World Open Tournament, when a split-decision was finally broken by the tournament judges in the final match and 1st place was given to Katsuaki Sato, leaving Royama with no choice but to accept 2nd place. The day following the tournament when more than a few fighters entered the hospital for injuries sustained during the competition, Royama attended his usual training.

No one who knows Kyokushin Karate today can hardly separate the style from its devastatingly powerful low shin kick. Not everyone knows, however, that it was Royama who made this technique famous. At the early World Tournaments the Japanese would hear the foreigners yell, "Low kick! Low kick!," and since the pronunciation of "R" in Japanese is so similar to "L", it was an honest mistake for them to hear "Ro kick! Ro kick!" instead, believing that even the foreigners had named this technique after the first Japanese fighter to make it famous. After all, it was with Royama that all of Japan had associated the introduction of this bone-breaking technique ever since they'd watched Royama break down Charles Martin in the 1st World Tournament with one destructive low shin kick after another.

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NEWS FLASH

Mas Oyama's Kyokushin Shogakukai Nonprofit Foundation "Wins Back the Red Kanku Mark from Matsui" in a Landmark Court

Decision which Paves the Way for an Eventual Reacquisition of the "Kyokushinkai" Trademarks

This past month in Japan saw the first round results of a long fought court battle between Mas Oyama's Kyokushin Shogakukai nonprofit foundation and Mr. Matsui Shokei over the rightful ownership of the Kyokushin trademarks. Totaling less than twenty, the contested marks include the multiple variations of the logos that we most associate with Kyokushin such as the red Kanku mark, the "Kyokushinkai" calligraphy that appears on all Kyokushin uniforms, and the name Kyokushinkaikan. Ever since Mas Oyama's death in 1994, as Mr. Matsui began to lose his grip on Mas Oyama's 12 million member organization, resulting in the multiple competing Kyokushin groups we see today, the ownership of the Kyokushin marks has been hotly disputed. There can be no question that at the time of Mas Oyama's death, "Kyokushin" was the biggest name in Japanese Karate. It was the name that commanded the most respect, and accordingly attracted the largest number of new members. It is believed that even today many of Mr. Matsui's supporters remain with him, despite discontent, out of a desire to stay with the group that bears the original name of Mas Oyama's organization.
In the mid-1980's, Mas Oyama began preparing for the protection of the legacy that would remain after his death by creating the Kyokushin Shogakukai, a nonprofit foundation recognized by the Japanese government and governed by 15 trusted associates, so that Kyokushin would never fall under the leadership of a single potentially-flawed director and so that the Kyokushin name could never be used for personal financial gain. It was in the name of this foundation that Mas Oyama registered the ownership of the Kyokushin logos with the Japanese Trademark Office. It was therefore the foundation that Mas Oyama trusted to safeguard the Kyokushin name.
Unfortunately, in the final years of Mas Oyama's life, consumed with preparations for the 5th World Open Karate Tournament in 1991, the Kyokushin Shogakukai's official nonprofit foundation status was allowed to lapse. In order to maintain its nonprofit status, time-consuming minimum requirements had to be fulfilled, such as biannual meetings of the Board of Directors and biannual reports filed with the Japanese Ministry of Education. Most importantly, however, and most critical to Mas Oyama, was the requirement that a foundation of this type support itself exclusively off of the interest earned from the minimum required sum of one hundred million yen (nearly one million US dollars), and without this enormous sum in the bank, the foundation lost its legal nonprofit status. Although the foundation didn't cease to exist, it went into suspension until it could reacquire the required savings. Meanwhile, since Japanese trademark registrations have to be renewed every 10 years, some of the Kyokushin trademark registrations were not renewed in the name of the foundation, and a vulnerability was created that would open the doors to Mr. Matsui's registration of the trademarks in his own name after Mas Oyama's death.
One of the most shocking revelations of this past year's court investigation, proven by evidence and accepted as fact by the tribunal of judges, was that Mr. Matsui not once, but twice, falsified documents in order to transfer the ownership of the trademarks into his own name. Mr. Matsui's initial application to register the trademarks was apparently denied on the grounds that the marks had formerly been registered in the name of the foundation. The trademark office further determined that the importance of the Kyokushin marks was too profound to place them in the ownership of a single individual. It wasn't until Mr. Matsui returned a second time with a letter from prominent board member, Mr. Umeda, granting him permission on the behalf of the Board, that the trademark office relented and registered the trademarks in Mr. Matsui's name. Mr. Umeda, who is Chairman of the Board today, was shocked to find out that his name had been used by Mr. Matsui secretly and without his approval, and this discovery finally led to the foundation's filing suit.
Also as a result of this discovery, the foundation started to doubt the letter which Mr. Matsui had used to transfer an earlier set of trademarks into his own name right after Mas Oyama died. Mr. Matsui had only been able to transfer these marks because of an earlier letter which had been word-processed in the name of Mr. Shiotsugu, the Chairman of the Board at that time. It was most difficult to believe that Mr. Shiotsugu would have actually allowed Mr. Matsui to transfer the marks from the foundation into his private name because it was explicitly against the wishes expressed for the foundation by Mas Oyama's Will. Mr. Shiotsugu, though mentally competent, was an invalid at the time and he would always consult with Mr. Umeda in any Kyokushin-related issues. Yet Mr. Umeda had never heard about Mr. Matsui's supposedly obtaining Mr. Shiotsugu's permission until recently, when he read Mr. Matsui's sworn statements.
In court, Mr. Matsui claimed to have visited Mr. Shiotsugu at his home far from Tokyo in order to gain his permission to generate the letter. It turns out, however, that at the time of Mas Oyama's death Mr. Shiotsugu's "hanko" (traditional wooden red ink seal used in Japan instead of signatures on formal documents) was in the safe in Mas Oyama's Ikebukuro office - the office that Mr. Matsui inherited - and that Mr. Matsui never visited Mr. Shiotsugu's home. As an invalid, Mr. Shiotsugu was constantly attended either by his wife or by his nurse. Both women testified in court that Mr. Matsui never visited Mr. Shiotsugu's bedside. It was thus determined by the court that Mr. Matsui had committed the crime of forgery in the process of obtaining the Kyokushin marks.
Unfortunately, it took time and negotiation for Kyokushin-kan Chairman Royama Hatsuo and Vice Chairman Hiroshige Tsuyoshi to reconstitute the foundation's Board so that it might regain its official standing and bring the issue of the Kyokushin trademarks to trial. Ten years had passed since Mr. Matsui's crime, and since according to Japan's Statute of Limitations ten years is the time limit within which criminal charges of this type must be filed, the foundation missed its chance to prosecute Mr. Matsui for fraud. This year's court case, therefore, was a civil action seeking only to reclaim the trademarks.
Let us remember that Kancho Royama and Vice-Chairman Hiroshige put forth the effort to reestablish the foundation to fulfill the dying wish of Mas Oyama. The reestablishment of the foundation, after all, was laid out in Mas Oyama's Will as one of the tasks required of Kyokushinkaikan's new chairman, Mr. Matsui. We know that before his death Mas Oyama desperately sought to regain government recognition of his Kyokushin Shogakukai: He dispatched then Branch Chief Hiroshige Tsuyoshi more than once to the Japanese Ministry of Education with orders to exhaust every possible means to re-establish the foundation so that it might be there to watch over his legacy. Perhaps if Mr. Matsui had led the Kyokushinkaikan in a way that a majority of Mas Oyama's followers would have respected, Mr. Royama and Mr. Hiroshige might not have felt so obligated to step in and fulfill this dying wish of their teacher in place of Mr. Matsui, who had been charged with that responsibility. Since Mas Oyama's organization, however, was visibly disintegrating under Mr. Matsui's leadership, and since Kyokushin's reputation was suffering such damage as a result, the founders of Kyokushin-kan had no choice but to break with Mr. Matsui and activate the very safety mechanism that Mas Oyama had envisioned as a protection against precisely this danger.
Mr. Matsui was failing to safeguard Kyokushin. Mas Oyama's answer to such a situation had been the oversight of the Kyokushin Shogakukai nonprofit foundation. No wonder Mr. Matsui had taken no steps towards its reestablishment. And no wonder Mr. Royama and Mr. Hiroshige could see no other option. We at Kyokushin-kan are very pleased by this court decision in favor of the Kyokushin Shogakukai. Although the victory was not complete, it is clear that an irreversible course of events has been set into motion that will lead to the happiest of all possible outcomes for Kyokushin-kan and Mas Oyama's legacy.
The court returned ownership of the red kanku mark to the Kyokushin Shogakukai, but stopped short of stripping Mr. Matsui of the "Kyokushinkai" calligraphy and the name Kyokushinkaikan. To understand the bearing this court decision is likely to have in the future, it is important to understand the court's reasoning. Although we would often like courts of law to base their decisions on moral righteousness, a court's obligation is instead to interpret the letter of the law. This month's 50-page court decision was abundantly clear in its disfavor of Mr. Matsui, since it determined in no uncertain terms that he had obtained the Kyokushin trademarks through fraudulent means; however, its decision reflected its careful consideration of Japanese trademark law.
The trademarks that were returned to the Kyokushin Shogakukai were marks that were still in possession of the then sleeping foundation when Mr. Matsui made his fraudulent appeal for personal ownership of the marks. Remember that trademark registrations in Japan are only valid for 10 years and must be renewed. While the foundation's registration of several Kyokushin trademarks, including the red kanku mark, had not yet expired, the earlier registration of the Kyokushinkai calligraphy and the name Kyokushinkaikan had expired, and had not been renewed because the Kyokushin Shogakukai was inactive. Thus the court determined that whereas Mr. Matsui's fraudulent action (by means of the Shiotsugu forgery) had been injurious to the foundation in terms the red kanku mark and several other unexpired marks, his fraudulent action (by means of the Umeda forgery) in terms of the expired marks was in a sense injurious only to the trademark office. Since the case was a civil case filed by the Kyokushin Shogakukai against Mr. Matsui seeking reparations for the damage that Mr. Matsui had done directly to the foundation, the best the court could do in the context of this trial was to award the foundation the trademarks that Mr. Matsui had taken directly from it by means of fraud.
The true impact of this court decision, however, runs far deeper than the superficial fact of who owns the trademarks. For the first time, the Japanese public, and more importantly Mas Oyama's followers, have seen the extent to which Mr. Matsui's position of extraordinary power at the helm of Kyokushinkaikan was his own fraudulent construction as much as it was Mas Oyama's intent. Mr. Matsui's ownership of the handful of trademarks that he still possesses is far from permanent. Even if he can hold on to the trademarks through the Kyokushin Shogakukai's forthcoming round-two legal action to regain that which rightfully is its own, Mr. Matsui will lose the right to hold the marks when their registration expires. Though this court decision didn't return those last remaining trademarks to the foundation, it did determine that Mr. Matsui had no legal claim to them. And by returning the red kanku and other marks to the foundation, it recognized that the foundation does have a legitimate claim. Remember that if not for Japan's ten-year Statute of Limitations, the court's conclusion that Mr. Matsui had falsified documents could have landed him in prison. That opportunity was missed, however, and Mr. Matsui maintains enough influence in Japan that he will likely survive and continue to profit as the chairman of his own organization.
Although Mas Oyama did have high hopes for the 33-year-old Matsui Shokei he appointed chairman of the IKO, it is also clear from the other stipulations of Mas Oyama's Will that he never intended Kyokushin to become one man's fiefdom. On the contrary, Mas Oyama created the independent Board of the Kyokushin Shogakukai to watch over any individual leader who might become corrupted by power or money, so that Kyokushin would never be thusly tarnished. Of course, as non-karateka, the Board members could never be expected to know more about karate than any karate instructor elevated to chairman, but they can most certainly be trusted as independent observers to watch for signs of corruption and to judge whether or not any chairman is proceeding in accordance with the foundation's mission statement as created by Mas Oyama.
It is important to emphasize that the Kyokushin Shogakukai is NOT one and the same as Kyokushin-kan. The Shogakukai is a 15-member Board of Directors - including several original directors appointed by Mas Oyama himself - charged with ensuring that those who use the Kyokushin trademarks are propagating ideals that would have met with Mas Oyama's approval. It is true that Kyokushin-kan Chairman, Royama Hatsuo, and Kyokushin-kan Vice-Chairman, Hiroshige Tsuyoshi, were involved in convincing Shogakukai Board members to reconvene and seek to regain government recognition, and it is true that this board is currently supporting Kyokushin-kan as the group most representative of what Mas Oyama would have wanted. But it's also true that the Shogakukai is a separate organization that could someday strip Kyokushin-kan of its right to use the Kyokushin marks, just as it is currently working to strip them from Mr. Matsui.
So what bearing is this decision - and, we predict, the foundation's ultimate reclaiming of all of the Kyokushin marks - likely to have on the Kyokushin world?
During the past decade, Mr. Matsui has time and time again tried to prevent other of Mas Oyama's original fifty Japanese Branch Chiefs from using the Kyokushin trademarks on the grounds of the registrations that he held. The Kyokushin Shogakukai, however, will NOT attempt to prevent others of these fifty Japanese Branch Chiefs from using them, because the Kyokushin Shogakukai believes that Mas Oyama's appointment of these individuals and the permission that he granted them to use the trademarks in their designated geographical areas ought to be respected. It is hoped that this demonstration will be seen as the offering of an "olive branch" of peace and that some, if not many, of Mas Oyama's surviving Branch Chiefs will eventually return to the Shogakukai and re-incorporate into the single organization that Mas Oyama intended.
It is also clear, however, from Mas Oyama's Will that he did in fact intend for there to be only one Kyokushin organization to bear the Kyokushin name into the future. Accordingly, the Kyokushin Shogakukai is likely to prevent any of those 50 Japanese Branch Chiefs who do not join the unified organization supported by the Shogakukai from a) using the Kyokushin name or trademarks outside their assigned territory in Japan to promote any kind of national or international organization, or b) passing the name on to their students or descendants for use beyond their lifetimes. Additionally, the Shogakukai will steadfastly prohibit the use of the Kyokushin name, or any variation of the Kyokushin name, by anyone outside of the organization that it supports or those 50 surviving Branch Chiefs of Mas Oyama. Kyokushin-kan and Shin-Kyokushin, for instance, are examples of variations of the Kyokushin name that will NOT be permitted by the Shogakukai once it regains full rights to all Kyokushin trademarks. Kyokushin-kan will gladly deliver all rights in its own legally registered trademark to the Shogakukai once this occurs, so that the Shogakukai can restrict its use as it sees fit.
We at Kyokushin-kan strongly believe that the use of any specific name for our organization is really far less important than the ideals that we are promoting, or the vision that our leaders have for the future. The reason why Kyokushin karate remained the world's strongest karate during Mas Oyama's lifetime was that Mas Oyama possessed the vision to allow Kyokushin to evolve generation by generation to meet the demands of each new era. Accordingly, if we lack the vision to allow that process to continue, if we endeavor to stop Kyokushin's evolution at the exact moment that Mas Oyama died, or if we follow organizations without qualified leaders, Kyokushin will lose the prominence that Mas Oyama spent his lifetime achieving. We at Kyokushin-kan believe that Kancho Royama and Vice Chairman Hiroshige possess the necessary vision to deliver Kyokushin successfully into the 21st century in a way that would make Mas Oyama proud. It is for this reason that we would insist on following them no matter what name we had to use. While we are certain that Mas Oyama would be pleased to see that which he named continuing to be the world's strongest karate into the new century, we also know that he would rather see us go forward with a correct vision for Kyokushin's future, even with a different name, if by some technicality we were ever prevented from using his.
Happily, it doesn't appear that we at Kyokushin-kan will have to make any such sacrifice. One of those key ideals of budo karate that Mas Oyama taught us was loyalty, and we do know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Mas Oyama wanted us to continue to propagate his ideals of budo karate and to call it Kyokushin. Furthermore, we know that he wanted there to be only one Kyokushin. Therefore, we are deeply pleased to be watching the current events in Japan unfolding as they are. It will still take a little time and a little hard work, but all indications right now suggest that the Kyokushin Shogakukai will regain all the Kyokushin trademarks, just as it regained the red kanku mark, and that we will be able to fulfill the greatest loyalty to Mas Oyama both by continuing into the future with his ideals of what budo karate should be and, at the same time, ensuring that it will be called "Kyokushin", the name Mas Oyama intended for the world's strongest karate.

In the decade following Mas Oyama's death, the 12 million member International Karate Organization that he built has fragmented several times into several smaller organizations. In 2002, Hatsuo Royama, one of Mas Oyama's early students from the Oyama Dojo era, along with many of his friends and followers, split from the then largest group of Sosai's followers, the KyokushinKAIKAN, and created a new organization called Kyokushin-kan.

Hatsuo Royama had struggled for nearly a decade to support the young leader of the Kyokushinkaikan - his junior by 15 years - but in the end he was finally forced to accept the fact that that organization was no longer being led in a direction that would have met with the approval of his teacher, Mas Oyama. The late karate legend, Mas Oyama, said time and time again that the most important element of Kyokushin karate was the BUDO SPIRIT which encompasses elements of proper behavior, courtesy, the spirit of Osu, and good will towards man, in addition of course to fighting prowess. In 2002, Hatsuo Royama realized that this all-important element of Mas Oyama's organization had been replaced by Mas Oyama's initial successor with a hunger for money and that the "budo spirit" had been largely replaced by the "business spirit" in the inner chambers of the Kyokushin leadership. Human relationships, friendships, and sempai-kohai (senior-junior) relationships, which Mas Oyama held as all-important, were being butchered in the name of money and a lust for power.

Additionally, Royama had been forced to face the conclusion that Kyokushin's fighting prowess was suffering under the new leadership as well. During Mas Oyama's lifetime there was no question in the hearts and minds of the Japanese public that Kyokushin was the world's strongest karate. Royama and others knew that the reason that it remained so was because of the emphasis that Mas Oyama placed on the real-world application of karate techniques. Mas Oyama created a full-contact style of tournament competition in order to popularize budo karate, but never went so far as to equate that tournament-style fighting with what he believed to the essence of budo karate.

Kyokushin tournament-style fighting IS a great venue for developing the win-at-all-costs fighting spirit of the karateka, yet it remains far removed from real life-and-death combat for self-defense. Punches to the head, for example, were removed from Kyokushin competition in the name of the popularization of karate that Mas Oyama achieved. The reason Kyokushin fighters become the strongest under Mas Oyama's teaching was that they trained for real-life application and then fought in the less-dangerous by comparison tournament-style environment. By 2002, however, Shihan Royama and others had realized that the new leadership of Mas Oyama's organization had abandoned Mas Oyama's emphasis on real-world application and instead lowered its standards to hold tournament-style fighting as all-important. After all, it was tournament-style fighting that generated money and fame.

As a result, Hatsuo Royama and other older, wiser instructors of Kyokushin karate - such as Shihan Tsuyoshi Hiroshige who holds the record for training more Japanese and world champions than any other instructor - realized that under Kyokushin's current leadership, Kyokushin was losing its edge. After ten years of decline following Mas Oyama's death, Kyokushin was no longer the world's strongest karate.

Shihan Royama and Shihan Hiroshige and many followers, therefore, broke with the largest remnant of Mas Oyama's organization, the KyokushinKAIKAN, and founded the rival Kyokushin-kan with the intention of returning Kyokushin Karate to the high level of esteem that it commanded during Mas Oyama's lifetime. They resolved to do this by ensuring that the budo spirit of proper behavior, courtesy, the spirit of Osu, the spirit of friendship, the sempai-kohai system, and good will towards man would remain of primary importance, while at the same time refreshing Mas Oyama's early emphasis of real-world karate application before it became tainted by the monetary lure of tournament fighting for financial gain.

One of Hatsuo Royama's first steps upon forming Kyokushin-kan was the re-establishment of Mas Oyama's Kyokushin Shogakukai foundation as prescribed in Mas Oyama's will at the time of his death. Mas Oyama had originally founded this nonprofit foundation in Japan many years earlier with the mission of strengthening the bodies, minds and souls of Japanese young people while at the same time fostering ideals that would increase the possibilities for world peace. The purpose of establishing this organization as a government recognized nonprofit foundation was to ensure that money and the hunger for money would never belittle the ultimate truth and lofty ideals of the Kyokushin Way. At the time of his death, Mas Oyama willed that his followers should re-establish the foundation that he'd created, and the failure on the side of the KyokushinKAIKAN's young leadership to achieve that goal had become yet another reason why Royama and others felt compelled to break away and follow a path that their teacher, Mas Oyama, would have celebrated. This point is supported by the fact that of the surviving board members of Mas Oyama's Kyokushin Shogakukai Foundation - a board composed of trusted advisors of Mas Oyama during his lifetime -- most of them have assumed their positions on the board and are supporting Royama's Kyokushin-kan.

In the 3 years since Kyokushin-kan was founded, over 6000 Japanese karateka have flocked to support its cause in 50 branches composed of many dojos spread across Japan. Additionally, 25 overseas branches have formally been established, including Russia, South Africa, Korea, Kazakhstan, the United States and others. Also, for these three years Kyokushin-kan has sponsored annual all-Japan and all-Japan weight category tournaments held in Saitama, north of Tokyo, and all Kyokushin-kan members eagerly celebrated Kyokushin-kan's 1st World Open Karate Tournament held in Moscow in September, 2005.

The Vice-Chairman (Fuku-Kancho) of Kyokushin-kan, Hiroshige Tsuyoshi was born in Japan on November 1st, 1947. From a young age, spiritual discontent led him on a search that finally ended when he began his study of budo karate at the age of 25. As a high school student Hiroshige had excelled as a handball player. In 1966 at the age of 19, he began working for Honda and ultimately worked for a total of three companies before ending his career as a "salary man" to become an Uchi Deshi (live-in disciple) of Mas Oyama.

Hiroshige began his training at Kyokushinkaikan So-Honbu Dojo in June of 1972. Three years later he entered Mas Oyama's Waka Jishi Ryo (Young Lions Dormitory) where he became Dormitory Chief responsible for overseeing the activities of younger uchi deshi. At the unheard-of late age of 28 Hiroshige began tournament fighting with his debut in the 8th All-Japan Tournament. After this tournament he supplemented his karate training with Ikken, and took 7th place in the next year's 9th All-Japan tournament. Hiroshige then went on to take 4th place in the 10th All-Japan tournament, and 5th place in the 11th All-Japan Tournament. In 1979 he represented Japan as a member of the 2nd World Open Karate Tournament team.

In June of 1978, Hiroshige founded the Jonan Branch of Mas Oyama's Kyokushinkaikan in Tokyo, and there, due to his original teaching style, emphasis on hard training, and special attention paid to special characteristics of each potential fighter, he made three successive world champions, Midori Kenji in 1991, Yamaki Kenji in 1995 and Tsukamoto Norichika in 1999. Since the World Tournament was only held once every four years, this means that Hiroshige's students remained world champions for 12 years. Additionally, Hiroshige made All-Japan champions, Kazumi Hajime and Takaku Masayoshi.

Hiroshige coached the Japanese Kyokushinkaikan World Cup team for the Paris competition in 1998, and the Japanese team for the 7th World Open Karate Tournament in 1999.

In December of 2002, Hiroshige left Kyokushinkaikan, and founded Kyokushin-kan together with Royama Hatsuo with the intention of reviving Kyokushin Karate to the status that it held during Mas Oyama's lifetime.

"Big Jacques" Sandulescu had been Mas Oyama's close friend and "gaijin brother" since the early 1960s, when they met on one of Sosai's early trips to the United States. It's a meeting made legendary in the "Karate Baka Ichidai" comic books, with the result that people always ask Jacques, "Did you fight him?" (Isn't that always how strong men become friends?)

Let the answer remain shrouded in mystery; what we can say is that Jacques - then a Greenwich Village coffeehouse and jazz-bar owner, today an author and actor - trained with Sosai for six hours a day up to the rank of nidan, and received one of Sosai's own belts. Though Sosai did award Jacques a 6th dan consonant with his advisory status, Jacques has never worn it and still trains in that "old" belt.

Jacques helped to arrange some of Sosai's spectacular demonstrations that introduced the power of karate to the U.S. The photos here give a sense of how close they were, and remained to the end of Sosai's life. Jacques is still training and still active as an advisor to Kyokushin-kan and a friend to many Kyokushin Karateka around the world.

Perhaps the reason Jacques understood Sosai so well is that hardship, physical strength, and the will to achieve the impossible had been so central to his own life. Jacques had been taken prisoner by the Red Army in his native Romania in 1945, when he was 16.

After working for 2 years as a slave labourer in the Donbas coal mines (now in the Ukraine), he was injured in a mine cave-in, and then escaped in mid-winter to avoid the amputation of his legs. You can read his autobiography, DONBAS, on the net at http://donbas.com. He is adding a special epilogue about his friendship with Sosai Oyama, including more photos.

At the time José Millán began his practice of Kyokushin Karate under Sosai Mas Oyama in April of 1963 at "Oyama Dojo" as a contemporary of Kyokushin-kan Chairman, Hatsuo Royama, he had already practiced Judo in his native Spain and was a successful Judo player while in university (He now holds a 5th dan in Judo). After practicing at Oyama Dojo and upon his return to Spain for the first time in the summer of 1966, he became the first person to hold a black belt in karate in that country. Unfortunately, however, due to laws set up by the Sports Ministry of Spain, the practice of karate was prohibited, and he finally returned to Japan where he has lived for 40 years.

When the King and the Queen of Spain come to Japan in 1972, Mas Oyama organized a karate demonstration and a group of Kyokushin karateka, including Millán, performed in a two-hour demonstration that had only been scheduled to last ten minutes. The King enjoyed the demonstration so much that he asked to see more and once the demonstration was finally over he congratulated each participant one by one.

Until 2001, Millán participated as either a referee or judge in every one of the All Japan Tournaments and every World Open Karate Tournament, appointed to this honor since the very beginning by Mas Oyama himself. Alter Sosai's death, Millán became an advisor to the Kyokushinkaikan Honbu, a position which he held until Hatsuo Royama established Kyokushin-kan. This establishment, Millán realized, would have met with the approval of his original teacher, Mas Oyama. Millán's two daughters have also followed in his footsteps by training for many years in Japan under Kyokushshin-kan Vice-Chairman, Tsuyoshi Hiroshige.

José Millán is Professor Emeritus at Yokohama's Kanagawa University in Japan, making him the only foreigner to hold this honor. He has been a professor at this university ever since 1964. In 1998, Millán was decorated Knight Commander of the Civil Merit Order by Juan Carlos I, King of Spain.

Akio Koyama was born in August of 1958 in Tottori Prefecture, Japan. At the age of 21 he begain training at Ikebukuro's Kyokushinkaikan So-Honbu. Afterwards he transferred to Royama Dojo in Saitama and became Royama Kancho's first uchi deshi dormitory chief. After learning the essense of budo karate at Royama Dojo, Koyama founded Kyokushinkaikan's Sanin Branch. In December of 2002, he resigned from the Kyokushinkaikan along with Hatsuo Royama and Tsuyoshi Hiroshige and helped to create Kyokushin-kan, where he was made Honbu Chief.

Hiroto Okazaki was born in April of 1961 in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. From his first year in middle school he began his practice of Kyokushin Karate and upon graduating from high school he entered Royama Dojo and became an uchi deshi. He recieved Royama training since the time he was in Saitama Branch and after learning the essense of Royama's karate, he founded Kyokushinkaikan's Fukushima Branch. He also practiced Koryo Karate and Iaido for many years and he is known as an expert of kata. In December of 2002, he resigned from the Kyokushinkaikan along with Hatsuo Royama, Tsuyoshi Hiroshige and Akio Koyama, and helped to create Kyokushin-kan, where he was made Vice Honbu Chief.

Kyokushin-Kan Indonesia History

Kyokushin didirikan oleh Sosai Matsutatsu Oyama yang dilahirkan pada tanggal 12 Juli 1923 di Qa Ryong Ri , Yong Chi Myo’n, Chul Na Do, Korea Selatan. Dilahirkan dengan nama Young Li (Hyung Ye), tetapi setelah berimigrasi ke Jepang memaksanya untuk memakai nama Jepang. Dia memilih nama Oyama yang berarti “Gunung Agung”.
Permulaan Kyokushin, dengan Dojo Pusat seluruh dunia (Honbu) resmi dibuka pada bulan Juni 1964, dan resmi memakai nama “Kyokushin” yang berarti “Puncak kebenaran/ segala-galanya”. Kemudian Kyokushin menyebar ke lebih dari 120 negara dengan anggota terdaftar lebih dari 12 juta (1998), dan menjadikannya organisasi seni beladiri terbesar di dunia.
Pada tanggal 26 April 1994 Masutatsu Oyama wafat karena menderita Kanker Paru-paru walaupun bukan perokok. Ketika masih dalam perawatan sebelum meninggal dan dalam kegalauan Masutatsu Oyama menunjuk Shihan Akiyoshi Matsui (Dan VIII) sebagai penggantinya untuk memimpin Organisasi.
Pada dasawarsa setelah kematian Masustatsu Oyama, 12 juta anggota International Karate Organization yang dibangunnya mulai terpecah-pecah beberapa kali, menjadi beberapa organisasi yang lebih kecil.
Pada 2002, Hatsuo Royama, salah seorang di antara murid pertama Masutatsu Oyama dari era Oyama Dojo, serta banyak teman dan pengikutnya, memisahkan diri dari organisasi paling besar kelompok pengikut Sosai, KYOKUSHINKAIKAN , dan membuat organisasi baru yang dinamai KYOKUSHIN-KAN.
Di Indonesia sendiri aliran beladiri karate Kyokushin pertama kali terbentuk dengan nama Pembinaan Mental Karate Kyokushinkai Karate-do Indonesia didirikan oleh Shihan Nardi T. Nirwanto SA. Pada tanggal 7 Mei 1967 di kota Batu Malang.
Kemudian di tahun 1982 organisasi Pembinaan Mental Karate Kyokushinkai Karate-do Indonesia terpecah menjadi dua dengan berdirinya organisasi perguruan karate baru Indonesia Karate-Do Kyokushinkaikan yang di pimpin oleh Senpai J.B Sujoto.
Awal tahun 2008 organisasi Indonesia Karate-Do Kyokushinkaikan kembali terpecah dengan ditunjuknya Branch Chief Baru untuk Organisasi Karate Kyokushinkaikan di Indonesia Sensei H.Sugeng Pramono menggantikan Shihan J.B Sujoto oleh Kancho Shokei Matsui .
Pada tahun ini Juga Sensei Anthony F Pajouw memisahkan diri dari Organisasi Karate Kyokushinkaikan di Indonesia dan pada tanggal 19 Agustus 2008 mendapat Penunjukan langsung oleh Kancho Hatsuo Royama sebagai Branch Chief untuk Indonesia sekaligus membentuk Organisasi baru bernama KYOKUSHIN-KAN INDONESIA yang menginduk dengan organisasi utama KYOKUSHIN-KAN INTERNASIONAL JAPAN sampai sekarang.

Memulai seni beladiri pada usia 14 tahun dengan aliran Tae Kwon Do ITF full contact , kemudian masuk Kyoksuhin Karate tahun 1988 karena ajakan Kakaknya (Rudy F Pajouw) yang sudah terlebih dahulu bergabung di organisasi kyokushin karate kala hitam pada saat itu.
Anthony pertama kali latihan didojo Topas (Tomang Plasa) yang sekarang bernama Roxy Square setelah kerusuhan tahun 1998. Dia pertama kali mengajar di Dojo Sekolah Abdi Siswa Tanjung duren dengan murid sekitar 100 orang pada saat itu dengan tingkatan Kyu 1 pada tahun 1992. Setelah itu Anthony memulai membuka banyak tempat pelatihan (Dojo) diseluruh wilayah Jakarta dan juga menerima beberapa murid Kursus Private.
Pada tanggal 30 Agustus 1999 Menerima tingkatan Sabuk Hitam DAN I (Shodan) setelah lulus dalam ujian kenaikan tingkat yang diadakan di Semarang. Kemudian setelah melewati latihan dan ujian yang keras Anthony menerima tingkatan sabuk Hitam DAN II (Nidan) pada 5 Juli 2000 di Kopeng . Berbagai macam Prestasi diraihnya dengan mengikuti pertandingan baik Nasional maupun Internasional semakin menambah kemampuan tidak saja dalam hal seni bertarung namun menambah sikap mental dan spirit yang kemudian di berikannya dalam mengembangkan Pelatihan di daerahnya di DKI Jakarta.
Berkenalan dengan Ade Rai seorang Binaragawan Kawakan kebanggaan Indonesia menambah ilmu Anthony dalam membentuk dan menggabungkan kekuatan segi fisik terutama otot dan seni bertarung Kyokushin sehingga lebih banyak lagi prestasi yang diraihnya dalam berbagai pertandingan.
Hal ini juga akhirnya membuat Ade Rai tertarik untuk ikut mempromosikan Kyokushin Karate di Indonesia Khususnya di DKI Jakarta dengan mengajak Anthony dan kawan kawan untuk melakukan Demo Kyokushin dalam setiap penyelenggaraan acara binaraga, dan kerja sama dengan seluruh Klub Ade Rai Gym dan Golds Gym di Indonesia, tidak sampai disitu Ade Rai juga ikut latihan dan bergabung dengan beladiri Kyokushin Karate ini sampai mencapai tingkatan Sabuk Hitam DAN II.
Dengan semangat yang tak pernah padam untuk terus mempromosikan Kyokushin Karate dan karena pengetahuannya mengenai beladiri Kyokushin, pada bulan April 2002 Anthony terpilih menjadi komentator di sebuah acara televisi swasta nasional yang menayangkan acara pertarungan K-1 yang banyak didominasi oleh para juara petarung Kyokushin Karate Internasional
Tidak hanya sampai disana di tahun yang sama Anthony juga mendapat kepercayaan untuk menjadi wasit di acara TPI Fight dengan banyaknya kemunculan Anthony di layar televisi dan acara acara pertunjukan Demo di depan umum menambah pesatnya perkembangan perguruan Kyokushin khususnya di DKI Jakarta
Januari 2005 Anthony meraih tingkatan Sabuk Hitam DAN III (Sandan) setelah berhasil menempuh Ujian yang diadakan di Kopeng Jawa Tengah.
Diakhir tahun 2003 Anthony berlatih di Honbu Jepang selama 2 bulan, kemudian kembali ke tanah air meneruskan memberikan materi pelatihan seperti yang didapatkannya di Honbu Jepang.
Ketidakpuasannya dalam terus menambah kemampuan bertarungnya Anthony kemudian melakukan 50X Kumite yang diadakan di Dojo Pusat Kyokushin karate Indonesia di Batu Malang pada tanggal. 29 April 2007. 50X Kumite diselesaikannya dalam waktu 43 menit dengan memperoleh nilai kemenangan: ippon =19, waza-ari= 10, hikiwake=21 (Hikiwake dinyatakan untuk kemenangan Petarung)
February 2009 Meraih tingkatan Sabuk DAN III International Kyokushin-Kan di Fukushima Tokyo Jepang dan sekaligus mendapatkan Mandat Sebagai Branch Chief Kyokushinkan Indonesia dari Kancho Hatsuo Royama

Kejuaraan yang pernah diikuti :
The 6th World Open Karate Tournament versi IKO 2 di Yokohama Januari 1996
World Weight Category Karate Tournament di Tokyo April 1997
Kejurnas Kyokushin Karate ke VII di Bekasi November 1997 Juara III Kelas Bebas Putra
The 7th World Open Karate Tournament di Tokyo, Jepang November 1999
1st 50x Man Kumite di Jakarta Agustus 2000
The 8th Asia Open Karate Tournament di Manila, Philipina Oktober tahun 2000
Kejurnas Kyokushin Karate ke VIII di Semarang November 2000 Juara II Kelas Bebas Putra
The 1st Indonesia Open Karate Tournament di Surabaya Oktober 2001 Juara I
The 9th Asia Open Karate Tournament di Fukuoka, Jepang tahun 2002
Kejurnas Kyokushin IX di Surabaya Juara I Kelas Bebas Putra
The 9th World Open Karate Tournament di Tokyo, Jepang tahun 2003
The 10th Asia Open Karate Tournament di Denpasar, Bali tahun 2004 Juara IV
Kejurnas XIII Universitas Brawijaya Malang 26 Agustus 2006 Juara I Kelas Bebas Putra
The 2nd Indonesia Open Tournament di Bali 19 November 2006 Juara III Kelas Bebas Putra
2nd 50x Man Kumite di Batu, Malang 2007
The 3rd Indonesia Open Tournament si Surabaya 24 Agustus 2008 Juara III Kelas Bebas Putra
The 1st All Asia Open Kayokushin-Kan Karate Championship 2010 Juara IV

Tempat Latihan (Dojo ) yang pernah didirikan Sensei Anthony
1992 Dojo Sekolah Abdi SIswa Tanjung Duren , Jakarta Barat
1994 Dojo Relasi Fitness Center di Kebon Keruk, Jakarta Barat
1998 Dojo Pola Bugar di Kedoya, Jakarta Barat
2001 Dojo Klub Ade Rai BSG Tanah Abang, Jakarta Pusat
(sekarang di teruskan oleh Senpai Jesse Chandra dari Shinkyokushin)
2002 Dojo Mediteranian Casablanca Kelapa Gading, Jakarta Utara
2002 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Meruya Ilir, Jakarta Barat
2003 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Wisma Gading Permai, Jakarta Utara
(sekarang di teruskan oleh Sempai Augustianto Tjajadi dari Kyokushinkaikan)
2003 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Muara Karang, Jakarta Utara
(sekarang di teruskan oleh Sensei Ruddy Hariyanto dari Shinkyokushin)
2003 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Puri Bugar, Jakarta Barat
2004 Dojo Life Spa Kemang, Jakarta Selatan
2005 Dojo Apartment Permata Hijau, Jakarta Selatan
2007 Dojo Golds Gym Menteng Huis, Jakarta Pusat
2007 Dojo Golds Gym Citraland, Jakarta Barat
2008 Dojo Amethys Permata Hijau, Jakarta Selatan
2009 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Gajah Mada Plasa, Jakarta Pusat
2009 Dojo Manggala Wanabakti, Jakarta Selatan
2009 Dojo Apartment Gading Resident, Jakarta Utara
2009 Dojo Klub Ade Rai Senopati, Jakarta Selatan
2009 Dojo Rai Fitness Premier Bandung

Kamis, 08 Januari 2009

Postcard From Kancho Hatsuo Royama

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Kyokushin-Kan Indonesia History