Fourways Martial Arts Academy

Three dedicated athletes from 4Ways Dojo were chosen to represent the UFAK Region South at the prestigious championships held in Luanda, Angola, from 14 to 16 May 2026.
UFAK Region South had representatives from seven countries, with over 300 entries: Angola, 🇦🇴 South Africa, 🇿🇦 Botswana, 🇧🇼 Zimbabwe, 🇿🇼 Mozambique, 🇲🇿 Zambia, 🇿🇲 and Namibia.🇳🇦

A huge round of applause for 4Ways Dojo!

All three athletes delivered outstanding performances, bringing home a total of four medals: one gold🥇, one silver🥈, and two bronzes🥉.
Alessandro, Kelan, and Xavian have filled us with pride, representing both their country and dojo with distinction. Alessandro reached the final of his first senior kata and earned a silver medal. He was also selected to represent the South African 5-Man Team, which is arguably one of the most prestigious events an athlete can be chosen for, competing against the best from other countries, and the team clinched a bronze medal. Kelan captured his first international gold in the 12-13 years Kumite division, while Xavian secured his first bronze in the 10-11 years Kumite division. Their achievements are a cause for celebration for us all.
Results of the Fourways Dojo Medal Winners:

🥋Alessandro – 🥈Snr Kata 🥉Bronze Team Kumite (Protea)
🥋Kelan – 🥇Children Kumite (Protea)
🥋Xavian – 🥉 Children Kumite (Protea)

Finally, a heartfelt congratulations to Xavian Walters for earning his Protea Colours for the very first time.
A special congratulations to Alessandro Biagioni on his first time competing as a senior, being chosen as Team Captain, and making his debut for South Africa with the Protea team in individual kata in Angola.
A huge thank you to all the KSA coaches and managers for your unwavering support and for making our young champions feel truly celebrated in their accomplishments. 💪🏆🇿🇦

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to our three outstanding athletes from Fourways Martial Arts Academy as you prepare to represent South Africa as official Protea team members.
Congratulations to Xavian Walters on your first selection, to Kelan Walters on your second tour this year, and to Alessandro Biagioni on your debut in the individual Kata category as a Senior Protea.
These talented athletes will soon embark on their journey to Luanda, Angola, to compete in the AUSC Region South Karate Championship from 13 to 17 May 2026.
Wishing you all the best as you prepare for this incredible opportunity.
We are immensely proud of your achievements! 😊

CONGRATULATIONS!

Fourways Martial Arts Academy would like to congratulate the following candidates for their outstanding achievement in attaining their Black Belts. The grading took place from 1st to 3rd May 2026 at the ISMAA’s T O Strand Gasshuku, South Coast.

🥋*Alessandro Biagioni*: Senior 3rd Dan Black Belt (May 2026)

🥋*Josh Ben Opland-Anspach*: Senior 1st Dan Black Belt (May 2026)

Once again, Sensei Roberta and I are incredibly proud of our two Black Belt students. You have both contributed greatly to the success of Fourways Dojo and are valuable assets to the strength and spirit of our academy. Your achievements are remarkable.

Despite the many challenges, you have accomplished something truly amazing by persevering in this art for so long, always demonstrating a positive attitude and a willingness to help others. That alone is worthy of the grade you have earned.

I am deeply honoured and humbled to have dedicated over 40 years to the study of Goju Ryu karate. All credit goes to Sensei Arnold De Beer, Chief Instructor of the International Shorei Martial Arts Academy, whom I proudly call my karate father. I continue to learn from him every day, just as my students do. A heartfelt thank you, Sensei Arnold De Beer!

I also wish to recognise our esteemed ISMAA instructors, Sensei Tony De Beer and Sensei George Capazorio, both 8th Dan examiners, for their invaluable contributions to our students’ journeys. I am immensely proud to be part of this remarkable organisation and its inspiring community.

My wish is that you keep training and never lose the dedication you have shown over the years. Well done!

“With gratitude, I show respect.”

Thank you, Fourways Dojo!

4Ways Dojo want to Congratulations Milena Maffia for an incredible achievement—her first WKF K1 Youth League Bronze🥉medal in the U14 female kata division, narrowly losing in the semifinals by just one point, and then clenching a medal in the finals of the bronze medal match.
In the U14 +52 Kumite division, Milena showcased her resilience, finishing in 5th place after tough matches against Germany 🇩🇪 in the quarterfinals and Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 in the bronze medal match. It was an amazing run, pushing through rounds and coming so close to the BIG prize 🏆! Well done, champion 🥊 🇿🇦!!

The KSA National U21, Senior, and Veteran Championships, as well as the Development SA Championship , took place in Gauteng on February 27 and 28, 2026, at the Portuguese Hall in Pretoria. It was an unforgettable event!
Congratulations to 4Ways dojo⛩️ for their incredible performance! They bagged an astounding 20 national medals, including
•9 gold,
•9 silver,
•5 bronzes, making them South African Champions!

9 Gold medal winners:
🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇

🥋 Stef (Veterans Kata)
🥋 Alessandro (Senior KATA & Team Kata)
🥋 Reece (Senior Team Kata)
🥋Justin (Senior Team Kata)
🥋Senna (Children Dev -52kg Kumite)
🥋Ryland (Cadet Dev Kata)
🥋Isabella (Cadet Dev Kata)
🥋Abigail (Senior Dev +68kg Kumite)

9 Silver medallists:
🥈🥈🥈🥈🥈🥈🥈🥈🥈

🥋 Reece (Senior -75kg Kumite)
🥋 Bokang (Children’s Dev Kata)
🥋 Mila (Children Dev +30kg Kumite)
🥋 Alicia (Children Dev - 35kg Kumite)
🥋Isabella (Cadet Dev - 47kg Kumite)
🥋Damigio (Senior Dev Kata)
🥋Abigail (2 X Senior Dev Kata)
🥋Michael (Masters Dev Kata)

Bronze medalists:🥉🥉🥉🥉🥉

🥋 Justin (Senior +84kg Kumite)
🥋 Alexia (Children’s Dev -40kg Kumite)
🥋 Alecia (Children’s Dev Kata)
🥋 Bokung (Children’s Dev -30kg Kumite)
🥋 Ryland (Cadet Dev -52kg Kumite)

I'm beyond proud of our dojo for its resilience, especially under tough conditions and fierce competition.
Every single participant who represented Gauteng province should feel proud — your presence alone is a victory! Keep up the fantastic effort, and congratulations to those who secured their spots on the Nationals Squad! Let's go! 💪🏆!!!!

The KSA National Children, Cadet & Juniors event, held in Durban from 20th to 22nd March 2026, brought together over 400 passionate participants. A heartfelt congratulations to KSA for executing this vital event with exceptional excellence. A special salute to the 4Ways dojo for their remarkable achievements!

*8 NATIONAL MEDALS*

2 Gold medals 🥇
3 Silver medals 🥈
3 Bronze medals🥉

South African Champions
🥋Amira Kata 🥇
🥋Kelan Kumite 🥇

Silver
🥋Xavian Kumite🥈
🥋Amira Kumite 🥈
🥋Sarah Kumite 🥈

Bronze
🥋Milena Kumite 🥉
🥋Michael Kumite🥉
🥋Moekesti Kumite🥉

I am incredibly proud of our Dojo during these challenging times and rigorous selections. Regardless of whether you medaled, simply being there to represent Gauteng province is a significant achievement. Keep pushing forward, and congratulations to those who made the Nationals Squad!👏💪🏆

Fourways Martial Arts Academy hosted their 24rd Annual Senior and Children’s Karate Training Camp.
It was held at the Bosco Youth Centre south of Johannesburg on 14th & 15th March 2026.
Reflecting back over the years, it has become apparent that this event is for our dojo so important. Our students love every minute of the Bosco Camp! It’s noticeably that experiencing friendship, camaraderie is a huge factor up and above learning karate.
The venue is fantastic, safe for children with clean accommodation, good food. Facilities include the conference hall that caters for large groups of people at a time as well as an auditorium for PowerPoint presentations and a cinema for watching movies etc. The training camp accommodated all age groups, trying to perfect training of the Goju Ryu syllabus and Sports karate.

We were very honoured to have instructors from ISMAA that have had on average over 50 years of experience.
Goju Ryu practitioners such as Hanshi Tony De Beer, Sensei Stephan Coetzee, Stef Biagioni and Roberta Biagioni.

Special thanks must be said to Hanshi Tony De Beer, who is one of our most experienced instructors & Senior instructor for ISMAA. We were honoured with his presence at the weekend to help the future of our Black Belts.
Also a special thanks to Sensei Stephan who has never missed a Bosco Camp to help out. This weekend was excellent training for those senior adults that were interested in Goju Ryu self-defence.
Last but not least, Sensei Roberta and I would like to thank all the instructors from Fourways Dojo that helped this weekend:
Sensei Silvio Biagioni, Brenden Tsita. Our up-and-coming karate instructors such as Justin, Reece Baynes, Dhiren Mudaly & Alessandro Biagioni who with their experience and knowledge in sport as well as traditional karate was very well received.

This weekend was packed with thrilling leisure activities that made for an unforgettable experience! We dove into a swim session, engaged in epic pillow fights, and battled it out in tug-of-war. The fun didn’t stop there—we enjoyed high-energy ball games and cozy nights around the bonfire, where laughter filled the air as we watched movies and indulged in heaps of delicious junk food. Our vibrant T-Shirts not only added to the excitement but also brought us together as we worked towards our common goal: mastering the incredible art of GOJU Ryu karate!

Having done all that, we also had a club competition on Sunday where medals were awarded for the first, second and joint third places.
Certificates, medals as well as sweets were handed out to those who participated. We had Team Kata demonstration to mention a few. The hall was big enough for all of us to enjoy ourselves and make plenty of friends.
I would like to thank everyone involved including the PARENTS and hope you all enjoyed and gained more knowledge you had before the camp.

Looking forward to seeing you next year!
What an amazing time!