The Wado Karate Federation
The Wado Karate Federation (WKF) was founded as an association based in Bristol, South West of the UK, dedicated to the practice of traditional Japanese Wado karate. What is Karate? Karate-Do "the way of the empty hand" is a martial art originated in Okinawa. Karate-Do has its roots in Chinese martial arts introduced into Okinawa during feudal times. Karate-Do was broug
ht to the attention of the Japanese public at the start of the twentieth century by the Okinawan master Gichin Funakoshi. The art gained popularity and was exported to the West from Japan. The style practised within the WKF is Wado. What is Wado Ryu? "Wado" means "the way of peace and harmony" - "Ryu" means "school". Wado Ryu was devised by Hironori Ohtsuka, the first Grandmaster. Hironori Ohtsuka was already a master of Jiu-jitsu when he began to study Karate with Gichin Funakoshi and Choki Motobu. Wado Ryu was a development of Okinawan Karate in combination with Jui-jitsu. About Sensei John Oliver
John first started learning karate in 2000 at the age of 10 in Yate, Bristol at the Sangraal Reidendo Karate Club. After 12 months he moved to train under Sensei George Grimes, 8th Dan Kyoshi, at the Wado Karate Federation, also based in Yate. He gained his 1st Dan Certification from the Wado-Ryu Karate-Do Organisation at the Summer Course in Barnstaple, on 25 July 2008, and was promoted to 2nd Dan on 4 July 2011 by the Wado Karate Federation at the Summer Course in Portland, Dorset. Since moving to Thailand, he returned to the UK in 2016, and on 25th July 2016 successfully challenged his 3rd Dan at the Summer Course in Portland. On 10th May 2023 John travelled to C'an Picafort in Majorca to successfully challenge his 4th Dan. He started teaching karate at the age of 15, and has been actively involved ever since. At the age of 15, he was invited to train with the Wado Ryu, England squad, and picked up a bronze medal at the UK open championships in Sheffield on his England debut when only 16 years old. In 2009, he travelled to Tokyo to represent England in the Wado World Championships both as an individual and in the team event. For the 12 months leading up to the World Championships, he was receiving additional training alongside karate legends such as former world karate champion Rory Daniels. Unfortunately, he picked up a serious injury in Tokyo, and has been out of competitive action since. The damage has now been repaired, but he is now concentrating on passing his knowledge on to others. The Wado Karate Federation, Hua Hin
Sensei John, 4th Dan, Black Belt, moved to live in Hua Hin in April 2012 and is keen to continue the art. He is running regular training sessions from his home in Bon Kai for both adults and children. Class sizes are deliberately kept small (12 maximum) to give more personal attention. Classes are being run during evenings (when it is a little cooler). Most lessons are 2 hours long. The first lesson with the Wado Karate Federation is always free – if you don’t like it, there is absolutely no obligation to continue.
