Christmas

We finish 2019 on Sunday the 22nd of December to give us all enough time to defrost the turkey, put the star on the tree and settle down for Santa to arrive. We will be back in the new year on the 5th of January at Royton Scout hut ready to train hard in preparation for the first grading of the year on Sunday the 26th of January in Middleton Arena.

From all of us at Katana Jiu Jitsu clubs we wish you a merry christmas and a very happy new year. We can't wait to see you all in the new year when we will all be working off those mince pies and selection boxes.

Gladiator School

We are very excited to announce our new "Gladiator School" held in Royton Scout Club every Sunday. The Katana School of Gladiators is focussing on getting fit through grappling and sparring, also known as boxercise. The Gladiator class will not just aid fitness but boost confidence and self-esteem. It is a fantastic class open to both junior and senior members. Times are:4-5pm for juniors and 5.15-6.15 for seniors.

International Seminar 2019

Katana Jiu-Jitsu Club hosted it's annual international seminar on Saturday the 12th October. As always it was a fantastic event and very well attended. This year was one of our biggest with an amazing line up of guest instructors. We would like to thank all the guest instructors for supporting the event and passing on their knowledge to all the attendees. Thank you to Hanshi Riley, Soke Mancini, Shihan Ntanovaslis, Sensei Mitchell Sensei Fraser and Sensei Clarke for their great instruction.

Thank you to our amazing line-up of instructors, their techniques were amazing and their passion inspiring.

 

These events could not continue without the support of the students and clubs who attend. We offer a huge thank you to Reading Jiu Jitsu, Chorley Jiu Jitsu, Katana Jiu Jitsu, Leigh and Westhoughton Jiu-Jitsu, Poole Jiu-Jitsu, White Tiger and Leeds Kodokan for their support.

 Thank you to everyone who attended and supported this event.

Black Belt Gradings and Coaching Course

We had a fantastic day on the 5th October at our Autumn black belt gradings and coaching course.

The day started with our junior coaching course where students learnt the importance of health and safety, how to conduct warm-ups, the science behind a warm-up and first aid skills. All our juniors did exceptionally well and fully deserved their awards.  

Following directly on from their coaching course our juniors went directly into their gradings. We have come to expect great skill and technique from our students during their gradings and they did not disappoint us.  It was a tough afternoon for them all but they did not let us down, they were all fantastic and fully deserving of their new grades. A special mention must go to Reuben Adefoly who was promoted to junior black belt!

THe afternoon continued into the senior coaching course where duty of care, risk assessment, loco parentis, health and safety, session planning and first aid were all covered. Just like the juniors before them, the seniors passed the course with flying colours.

  We continued straight into their 1st Dan gradings where our three candidates were certainly made to work hard- there was not a dry Gi in the dojo! They all proved themselves more than worthy of a black belt, showing dedication, commitment and skill. Congratulations to Dennis, Patrick and Andy from all of us at Katana.

 

October International

The October international course is getting closer  and there is no let-up in making the course  one of the best ever hosted. We are delighted to announce that the great Sensei Alex Fraiser had agreed to pass on his knowledge alongside our other great instructors. 

• Hanshi William Riley
• Soke Stefano Mancini
• Shihan Solon Ntavovasilis
• Sensei Alex Fraiser
• Sensei Tony Siong
• Sensei Peter Clarke
• Sensei Les Mitchel

Tickets for this event are priced at £25 for seniors and £20 for juniors. For more information or to book yourplace on the course please contact us at katanajj@gmail.com.

Hanshi William Riley

Sensei Alex Fraser

 Sensei Les Mitchel

 Sensei Peter Clarke

 Soke Stefano Mancini

Sensei Tony Siong

Shihan Solon Ntavovasilis

Getting better and better

Not content with being a national champion our very own Carys Williams continues to push herself to greater heights. This week Carys in not only our Golden Glove winner but also gained her junior black and red belt in Kobudo. Congratulations from us all!

Prefects

A huge congratulations to Marcus O'Keefe and Declan Tilby who have been promoted to "Prefects" by Hanshi Riley. Marcus and Declan join a very important group who uphold the values of the club and act as role models to our junior members. Congratulations from us all and keep up the good work! 

 Prefect Marcus O'Keefe

Prefect Declan Tilby

Carys Williams- National Champion

In her debut competition, our very own Carys Williams won gold at the AMA National competition in Bury this weekend. It was a fantastic competition with experienced competitors from all over the country but it was Carys who came out on top with her sensational kata. The Katana family is incredibly proud of Carys and we cannot wait to see her undoubted further success.

 Our Golden girl, Carys with her gold medal- National champion!

 A very proud coach, Hanshi Riley, with National champion Carys

Katana Jiu Jitsu International Course

On the 12th of October this year Katana Jiu Jitsu Clubs will be hosting their annual international course at the Middleton Arena. The event will run from 2.30 pm until 5 pm. We are proud and excited to be able to announce our fantastic line-up of expert practitioners who will be passing on their techniques at this years conference;

• Hanshi William Riley
• Soke Stefano Mancini
• Shihan Solon Ntavovasilis
• Sensei Tony Siong
• Sensei Peter Clarke
• Sensei Les Mitchel

Tickets for this event are priced at £25 for seniors and £20 for juniors. For more information or to book yourplace on the course please contact us at katanajj@gmail.com.

Hanshi William Riley

 Sensei Les Mitchel

 Sensei Peter Clarke

 Soke Stefano Mancini

Sensei Tony Siong

Shihan Solon Ntavovasilis

Black Belt Gradings

We had a fantastic day last Saturday at our black belt gradings. We have come to expect excellence at Katana Jiu-Jitsu Clubs and once again we were not dissapointed. A huge degree of technical skill was shown, everyone gave it their all and everyone passed theirgradings with flying colours. You can all be very proud of yourselves as all of Katana is proud of you.

A special congratulations goes out to all our new junior black belts; Grace, Jessica, Joshua, Declan, Zac and Jay.

We also saw Sensei Karen put in a spectacular performance to earn her third Dan and Sensei Mark working extermly hard to earn his coverted red jacket and 6th Dan.

Congratulations to Sensei Mark on his red jacket (he desperately needed a new one anyway!) and promotion to 6th Dan. 

Golden Gloves and Headbands

Well done to Marcus O'Keefe and Lilly Tucker who were awarded the small golden glove and headband by Hanshi Riley for their consistent skill and technique. Congratulations and we look forward to seeing you both win plenty more awards in the future.

 Marcus O'Keefe received the small golden glove from Hanshi Riley

Lilly Tucker received her headband from Hanshi Riley

Middleton Gradings 27th January 2019

The gradings on Sunday were a truly great occasion for Katana Jiu-Jitsu. We had a large number of people grading and some great support. Katana has always had very high standards and these gradings were no different, everyone showed dedication and great technique. A huge congratulations to you all. 

A special mention to Samuel Dyson who acheived his Junior black and red belt in kobudo. Samuel has been a loyal and dedicated member of katana and truley deserves this grade- congratulations from us all! 

 Samuel Dyson with a well deserved black and red belt in kobudo, congratulations!

A great group shot and an even better turnout for gradings. Every belt was hard earned and we look forward to watching you all progress.

 

Head Band Winner

A huge congratulations to our latest headband winner Charlie Shaw! Keep up the great work.