Headband Winner

A huge congratulations to Dylan Reywood who this week became our newest headband winner. Congratulations from all of us at Katana. 

Merry Christmas

To all our members, friends and family- MERRY CHRISTMAS! Enjoy a well earned break and we look forward to seeing you all again in the new year. 

Christmas Opening Times

Please note the closing dates for Christmas and the start dates for the new year.

Royton Scout Club

Finish Sunday 23rd December

Start Sunday 6th January

Castleton Club

Finish Friday 21st December

Start 11th January

Middleton Club

Finish 19th December

Start 3rd January

Bradford University Club

Finish 12th December

Start 9th January

University of Bradford Gradings

Congratulations to everyone who graded at the University of Bradford last week. It was a fantastic effort from everyone with great technique shown by all. It was great to see so many beginners to the sport take their first gradings and we look forward to seing their development. 

Gradings 2019

Please note the grading dates and times for 2019:

White - Brown at the Middleton Arena

January the 27th 1.30pm - 4pm

May the 26th 1.30pm - 4pm

September the 29th

Black belts at Castleton Community Centre

2nd March Juniors 2.30pm - 4pm and seniors 4pm - 6pm

5th October Juniors 2.30pm - 4pm and seniors 4pm - 6pm

The international course will be held on the 19th October between 1.30pm and 4pm, guest instructors to be confirmed.

Large Golden Glove Winner

A huge congratulations from everyone at Katana to Zac Sturrock who has earnt the first ever Large Golden Glove trophy. 

Headband Winner

Congratulations to Alfie Davey for winning the Katana headband. Keep up the great work!

13th November 2018- International Course

We had a fantastic course this Saturday with a great turnout. A special thank you to our guest instructors Sensei Les Mitchel and Soke Stefano Mancini for teaching us all some great techniques. We must also thank Hanshi Riley for organising such a fantastic event, it really was enjoyed by all. Most of all though we want to thank each and every person who attended and showed their support to Katana. We really couldn't run these events without your attendence and support. We look forward to the next one!

6th October 2018- Black Belt Gradings

What a day! An absolutely superb set of gradings saw two of our students promoted to Junior Black Belt and an unpresidented six promoted to Senior Black Belt. The gradings were fantastic and left Hanshi Riley in no doubt that everyone fully deserved their promotion. All of our students have shown a staunch dedication over several years of training to get to the day and produced when it matters most with great technique shown on the day. We hope all of our students are justly proud of their achievements, just as we as a club are proud of them. 

A very happy looking group (albeit very red and sweaty!) with friends and family. Congratulations to you all.

Royal Toby Hotel

Hanshi Riley has managed to secure some fantastic room rates at the Royal Toby Hotel for this years international conference on the 13th October. Prices for Saturday the 13th are £60 for a single or double room and £70 for a triple room. If you want to stay on the Friday night or the Sunday night (day before and after the conference) rates are £50 for a single or a double and £60 for a triple room. All prices include breakfast on all three nights. To book your room please contact the Royal Toby Hotel. The website can be accessed by clicking this link https://theroyaltobyhotel.co.uk/.

AMA National Competition

At the weekend Hanshi Riley travelled to the AMA Nationals to act as a referee and judge in this prestigious competition. Hanshi Riley was there not just because of his position within the AMA but because he is a world wide recognised expert in Jiu-Jitsu. This trip is the start of a new era for Katana Jiu-Jitsu Club as Hanshi Riley will be looking to put a squad together to compete in next years nationals. With the skill of our club members and the expert training of Hanshi Riley this is likely to be a formidable team!

Judge Hanshi Riley with a very happy looking medallist.

Palm Heel Strikes

Here is the definitive kata of palm heel strikes for the 1st Dan syllabus, expertly performed by Hanshi Riley. Please note the precision and technique involved in these strikes as well as the smooth flow of the movements.

Friendship

Two great masters of Jiu-Jitsu and two friends. Hanshi Riley and Soke Mancini are great friends both on and off the mat. Long lasting friendships are made in Jiu-Jitsu and with these friendships come  the evolution of Jiu-Jitsu.

 Two legends of Jiu-Jitsu, two friends and two schools linked by this friendship

Black Belt Kata

Hanshi Riley has set the highest bar when it comes to technique. Here is a video of him performing the black belt kata. In order for Katana to remain at the top of Jiu-Jitsu this is the standard expected of all black belts.

Gradings- 20th May 2018

Another fantastic grading day for Katana Jiu-Jitsu Club this Sunday at Middleton Arena. Everyone showed a great standard and showed why Katana is at the top of the pile. Everyone who graded did themselves, the coaches and the club proud. 

Another great grading from everyone, you should all be very proud of yourselves!

Coaching course- April 2018

Saturday the 28th of April saw the second Katana Club coaching course. We had a fantastic turnout for the course which was designed to develop the next generation of coaches to keep Katana Jiu-Jitsu at the top of its field. The course was run by Hanshi Riley, Dr Alex Surtees and paramedics Jon Banham and Heather Reeve. Everyone did exceptionally well and we look forward to seeing your progression on the mat.

Welcome to the next generation of Junior coaching assistants and senior club coaches.

 Our new junior assistant coaching team

And our newly qualified senior coaches

Italy 2018

We had a fantastic time in Italy at the "2018 Masterclass Weekend" hosted by Soke Stefano Mancini. A bumper group flew out and showed how strong Katana Jiu-Jitsu is both on and off the mat. We would like to say a huge thank you to Stefano and his team for organising such a great weekend and for being wonderful hosts. For all the photographs please see the photographs section of the blog.

 The Katana team ready for training...

 ...whilst the "WAGS" enjoyed a day in Parma.

 We all need to get back in training after all the lovely meals that we enjoyed.

 The surviving members of the Katana coaching team and our host Stefano.

Black Belt Gradings

We had a fantastic gradings on Saturday with club members achieving their junior black belts, continuing their progression through their gold tabs and Minnie achieving her senior black belt. Everyone put on a fantastic display and are more than worthy of their new grades. The standards were exactly what we have come to expect from our students- fantastically high with everyone showing a great level of skill, determination and dedication. On behalf of everyone at Katana congratulations on your new grades, we are all very proud of you.

Minnie with some very proud examiners and instructors

Luke was excellent in his grading for his junior black belt

A fantastic grading from Caydon saw him achieve his junior black belt

 Minnie had an outstanding grading that saw her promoted to black belt 1st dan.

More pictures to follow...

University of Bradford Gradings

On Saturday the 24th of February the University of Bradford club had their first gradings of 2018. All those who graded showed exceptional skill and technique. A big congratulations to everyone who graded, keep up the good work!

Well done to everyone at Bradford who passed their gradings on Saturday.

Heather's Journey

A fantastic article written for the North West Ambulance Service by our very own Heather Ainscough about her journey so far in martial arts. To see the full article please follow the link after the story.


I started my journey in Martial Arts with katana Jiu-Jitsu Club during May 2016. I have always admired the skills and dedication of the Art and after visiting a number of classes to observe my partner practice Jiu-Jitsu I felt it was the right time to challenge myself and obtain the skills and knowledge to protect myself if necessary.
Even before I joined the club I was made to feel very welcome, stepping onto the mat for the first time was daunting but the Sensei’s look after you; breaking down the moves so you can learn step by step and understand how the moves work.
Throughout my younger years I had faced many difficult situations leaving me with a somewhat shattered confidence and not having any belief in myself. I knew things had to change and self-defence seemed like the perfect opportunity to rebuild my life and self-belief.
All of the Sensei’s are very supportive and have vast amounts of knowledge, skill and patience. You are made to feel very welcome and I feel I have a Jiu-Jitsu family with the Club; I have made some amazing friends for life.
The Club is run by International Director Hanshi William Riley who holds 9^th Dan status and has been teaching Jiu-Jitsu for over 45 years.
Katana is a family friendly Cub and hosts a variety of events throughout the year. These include; theme Dinner Dances, Master classes, International Courses including visits to Italy, National Coaching Courses and much more. We are very excited to be visiting Italy again in April to attend an International Seminar.
I train 2-3 times a week and have started to assist in helping to train our juniors. I feel very proud to be a part of Katana Jiu-Jitsu Club, my confidence has grown and I have achieved much more than I ever thought I could. I look forward to my future with Katana and am grateful for the new life and outlook it has given to me.
It is never too late to start Jiu-Jitsu. We warmly welcome beginners and have many times and venues to choose from so feel free to get in touch and come down to see what we do. For a list of our classes and news updates check out our website at: http://katanajj.blogspot.co.uk/

 

 

The link to the full article:

http://iiy.nwas.nhs.uk/story/heathers-journey-martial-arts/

Gradings- 28th January

We had a fantastic afternoon at Middleton Arena on Sunday. There was a large turn out for gradings and all the students did exceptionally well. We would like to say a massive congratulations to everyone who passed and showed great skill in their gradings. 

A very happy and tired group after a great grading day. Congratulations to you all.

International Course 2018

We are proud to announce that Katana Jiu-Jitsu will be hosting an international course on the 13th October 2018. Special guest instructors form around Europe will be travelling over to Middleton to teach students their incredible techniques.

For more information and to register your details please contact Hanshi Riley on 07711600949 or Sensei Alex Surtees on 07960013480 / katanajj@gmail.com