ABOUT US
SEMPAI KEN
Sempai Ken started his Karate training in August 1987 and his instructors were Shihan Richie Saunders, Shihan Rowan Stephens who are still to this day his instructors.
Sempai Ken Graded to Shodan (black belt) on Sunday the 27th November 1994 and opened his first dojo at Norlane Waterworld, November 1995. Ken was promoted to Nidan (2nd level black belt) on the 12th October 1997.
Sempai Ken was selected to train in the Victorian training squad in 1990 and remained a member of the squad until 1994 when he retired from full contact tournament fighting. During this time he competed in many full contact and non contact karate tournaments and Kata competitions and has had many podium finishes including becoming State Champion at the VKKA Full contact championships in 1990, and was also selected to compete in the Australian Championships on two occasions.
Sempai Ken also competed in non contact tournaments at both state and national level placing second at the Nationals.
Being a firefighter Sempai Ken also competed in the World Police and Fireman's games in 1995 and came home with a bronze medal.
Ken has travelled to Japan on many occasions to train with some of our highest ranked instructors and in 2023 trained at the International training camp and then competed in an International Kata competition in Ehime, Japan. Ken has recently passed on the Torquay dojo to his black belt student Sempai Shane and has become the Senior Instructor at Bannockburn YMCA.
SEMPAI JANE
Sempai Jane is a local Bannockburn resident and mother of three, whose children have gone through Bannockburn Primary School and Bannockburn P-12 College and were Young Lions in Kyokushin Karate both in Bannockburn and Geelong.
Sempai Jane has been training in Kyokushin Karate since February 2016 under Shihan Ritchie Saunders and Sensei Hiroko Suzuki in Geelong, and has extended her training across multiple dojos in Victoria and Japan. She has participated in seminars and specialist training days under the guidance of Japan's most highly regarded instructors both in Australia and Japan.
She has won multiple kata competitions in Australia and has represented Australia in kata in Japan, with her most recent achievement being awarded the title of "2024 Australian Kata Champion" in the Adult Advanced Division on the Gold Coast.
For many years, Sempai Jane has been associated with AJKU Young Lions, assisting, co-instructing, and instructing Young Lions classes at Leisurelink and Newtown YMCA dojos. She enjoys working with children and strives to ensure they not only learn the techniques and benefits of Kyokushin Karate but that each child feels happy, confident and comfortable in the class. Sempai Jane is our Specialist Children's Karate Instructor at Kyokushin Karate Bannockburn.
ABOUT KYOKUSHIN
Australia Japan Kyokushin Union
(Australian Kyokushin Karate Geelong)
International Karate Organization
Shihan Ritchie Saunders 6th Dan
Welcome to Kyokushin Karate!! Kyokushin Karate is a traditional Japanese martial art and one of the strongest forms of martial arts in the world with over 15 million people training. All of your senior instructors are internationally qualified instructors, tournament judges and referees with huge experience. Karate is a great thing for young children as well as senior people for their fitness, confidence as well as being a natural form of self defense. Please try out first two free lessons and make sure Karate is what you are looking for!!
Shihan Ritchie Saunders, Osu!!
History of Kyokushin Karate
Sosai Masutatsu Oyama was the founder of Kyokushin Karate. (Pictured below)
He was born in Korea on the 27th July 1923. At the age of 9 he began studying Chabee & Shaolin
Temple Boxing. He continued this until he was 13. At the age of 14 he was sent to Japan to attend a
boy's military academy. It was then that he began training in Shotokan. He moved to Tokyo to train
in Funakoshi's dojo (Founder of Shotokan). He trained for 2 hours a day, and built himself into a
deadly fighting machine and was eventually graded to 4th Dan by Funakoshi. At the age of 18 he was
enlisted into the Japanese Army. He made friends with Cho Hyung Ju (Goju-Kai karate specialist). In
1946 he went to Mount Minobu and began an arduous training regimen. On his return to civilization in
1947 he became the All Japan Champion. He then returned to the mountains for a year and trained for
14 hours a day. After his time of isolation on the mountain he returned again to civilization to
apply what he had learnt. He matched his strength against live bulls and these battles became
legendary within Martial Arts circles and even today. In 1952 (after travelling to America to
challenge himself against other fighters) he returned to Japan to open his first dojo. Under his
leadership Mas Oyama built Kyokushin into the largest Karate Organization in the World.
In 1975 the First World Open Karate Championship was held and has been held every 4 years since.
Mas Oyama was considered by many to be the strongest karate man alive. He defeated 300 men in full contact fighting that continued for 2 days. This record is still unbroken. On April 26th, 1994 Mas Oyama died in Tokyo from cancer.
The Philosophy of Kyokushin Karate
Kyokushin Karate is based on respect:- Respect of the individual regardless of race; religion or sex
- Respect for your ability. Use it only for peace and protection
- Respect for your instructor
- Respect for other students, your family and those you have contact with
We only teach those that can follow the "WAY". When they have achieved all of the above you will learn that the world has no need of violence. The karate ka walk in peace and karate is only used as a means of self defense and a way to achieve peace.
All Japan Kyokushin Union Group
Should you join at one of our dojo, you can train at other dojo for no extra charge.
There are also numbers of Kyokushin Union group dojo within Geelong and surround areas available for extra training basically every night of the week.
Bannockburn YMCA Dojo
Sempai Ken McKeegan, Senior Instructor0412 149 949
mckeegan1@icloud.com
Sempai Jane Burns, Specialist Childrens Karate Instructor
0407 411 892
Shihan Ritchie Saunders, Head Instructor
0419 138 629
ritchiesaunders@bigpond.com
www.kyokushinkarategeelong.com