Sensei’s Corner
Message from the Sensei
The year has almost come to an end, a year with great achievements by the Tiger family, but also a few low’s. A few of our senior black belts had to say goodbye due to work related issues and we wish them al the best for their future. In March, a few of our students took part in the WUKF Nationals hosted in PE. Taking into consideration that this was our first encounter with WUKF, the students did very well. We are planning to send a bigger and stronger team in 2024 and thus make WUKF realize who Shorinkan is. The Tiger Tournament in August was again, a huge success and with 220 entries, one of the bigger tournaments on the calendar. From my side I want to thank every student for their effort and competitiveness and also thank you to each and every official and parent who helped making this another one to remember!!
In October, the Gauteng region held the Shorin-Ryu Shorinkan National Championship in Pretoria. This was held over two days and was once again, a Tournament of note. The Tigers did exceptionally well with 49 gold, 36 silver and 35 bronze medals. The Tigers also won the following open floating trophies:
Male kumite: Nidan Ryno Vosloo
Male weapons: Nidan Ryno Vosloo
Male unison: Sensei Nico Basson, Nidan Ryno Vosloo, Shodan Charl-Francois Marais
Sensei Anome Coetzee did exceptionally well and took gold medals in all her divisions, as well as the following floating open trophies:
Female Kumite
Female Kata
Female Weapons
Female Unison, with Nidan Lana Vosloo and Shodan Johalise Stolz in the team.
We are already making arrangements to travel to PE next year to be part of the 30th anniversary festivities.
All that is left for this year is our Kyu grading on Nov. 4, our black belt grading on Nov. 18 and then our awards evening on Nov. 25. I would also like to wish the following people good luck with their preparation for the black belt grading:
Sensei Anome Coetzee grading for Yondan (4th dan)
Shodan Charl Marais grading for Nidan (2nd dan)
Justin Goosen grading for Shodan (1st dan)
I know that you will do us proud on the day.
With this then, I want to wish all our students and parents the very best for the rest of the year, a very Merry Christmas and an extraordinary 2024!!
May our Lord be with us all during these festive periods.
About Sensei Riaan Coetzee
Sensei Riaan Coetzee started his karate career in 1974 at the age of 13. After practicing Judo for some years, he made the switch to Karate and joined the Villieria Tigers Dojo. At the time, it was already a strong dojo, teaching Funakoshi – a very strong style of karate in South Africa at the time. When he graded for his purple belt, he moved from Funakoshi to Kyokushin, which was a full contact style of karate.
The reason for his move from Funakoshi to Kyokushin was partly because the head Sensei of the Villieria Tigers dojo got transferred in his full-time job, and the dojo was without a Sensei for a while. Sensei Riaan’s passion for kumite led him to make his final choice to move on in order to continue to live out this passion.
In 1979, Sensei Riaan matriculated and started his two years of compulsory military training in 1980, with the Artillery Corps of the South African Defence Force. After completing his military service, he went back to the dojo, only to find out that none of the students he knew were left. The dojo was still there, but the remaining students were doing Funakoshi Karate again, under the leadership of a new Sensei. Riaan re-joined the dojo and the Funakoshi style, and graded for his first black belt (Shodan) in 1987.
While still training with the Villieria Tigers Dojo, Sensei Riaan opened his first dojo in Atteridgeville in 1991 and started training his own students. A year later, the head Sensei at the Villieria Tigers Dojo retired from Karate, and Sensei Riaan stepped in to take over the dojo where he has been a student since he started his karate career.
In 1994 most of the dojo owners resigned from Funakoshi karate and joined Shihan Claude Johnson in the newly established Shorin-Ryu Shorinkan style, which was brought into South Africa via the USA and Kyoshi Noël Smith. Sensei Riaan became Provincial Head of Northern Transvaal Shorin-Ryu Shorinkan Karate, reporting directly to Shihan Claude Johnson.
Sensei Riaan graded for his 5th Dan (Renshi) in Karate in 2003, and for his 2nd Dan in Kobudo in 2004, both under the supervision of Kyoshi Pat Haley from the USA. In 2006 he was awarded his 6th Dan (Shihan) in Okinawa by Grandmaster Hanshi Shugoro Nakazato, President of Shorin-Ryu Shorinkan Karate worldwide.
In 2012, at the South African National training camp at Gariep, Sensei Riaan graded for his 7th Dan, and was awarded the rank of Kyoshi Nanadan by Hanshi Doug Perry (9th Dan), in the presence of numerous other Kyoshi and Renshi instructors from the USA, who all attended the camp.
As an active student of Karate, Sensei Riaan was part of the SAMAC (South African Martial Arts Commission) team in the 1980’s. He represented Shorin-Ryu South Africa twice against Botswana and was also a member of the Shorin-Ryu South Africa team that represented the country in Okinawa in 1997. He is currently the Vice President of Shourin-Ryu Shorinkan South Africa.
Representing Shorin-Ryu South Africa in Okinawa was one of the highlights in Sensei Riaan’s career, along with a training session with Hanshi Shugoro Nagazato in 1997, and a ten-day training session with Kyoshi Doug Perry in the USA in 2004. The utmost highlight of his career, however, was the day he entered the Shuri Castle through the Gate of Suri in Okinawa.
*NOTE: Sensei Riaan has been with the Villieria Tigers Shorin-Ryu Shorinkan Dojo for most of its 50 years existence. Besides the four years that the dojo operated between 1970 and when he joined in 1974 as a young boy, and the two years he was in the military, Sensei Riaan has been with the dojo through it all. As the dojo turns 50 years old this year, the members of the dojo would like to acknowledge Sensei Riaan’s total of 44 years with the dojo – 28 of which he was head Sensei!
Domo arigato, Kyoshi!
