News from G2G Karate

BASK International Karate Championship

Sat, 02 May 2026 08:41:04 GMT

G2G Students compete at the BASK Championships

The British Academy of Shotokan Karate (BASK) hosted their International Championships on April 26, 2026, at Brunel University, Uxbridge. Students and coaches from G2G attended!

Just a few pics from the BASK comp last Sunday! We had a good turnout for this one……a new experience for some students and a good test for the skills they’ve learned in a totally new arena. Some great performances and great team spirit from everyone!

2026 Malta Open & World Champs

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 10:41:20 GMT

Students compete at karate competitions in Malta

The 2026 Malta Open took place on 26–27 March followed by the 2026 WKA World Championships on 27–29 March. Students and instructors attended at the MFCC venue, Ta' Qali – Malta's premier event arena. We've always found the Malta Open to be a friendly and well-run international karate competition, and this year was no exception. Followed directly by the WKA World Championships this was a chance to compete in two international competitions in one trip!

It takes some courage to step up to the international level, and there is the chance to compete against a variety of athletes from different countries with different styles of fighting or kata. Facing new opponents helps students challenge themselves, adapt to different styles, and identify areas for improvement. Well done to our students who challenged themselves at this level, and congratulations on earning medals! This shows the determination and hard work that you have put in along the way. This was also a chance to represent our country at the international stage, and it was great to see the other competitors from England taking part alongside our own athletes. Well done everyone!

Want to get started with competitions?

For those who are starting out with competitions, we have friendly in-house competitions run by our own G2G instructors and helpers. T he next inter club competition takes place on Saturday 4th July 2026 , with both Kumite (fighting) and Kata categories. Students who are Yellow belt and up, who are interested in entering either or both categories, please ask your instructor for more information. Some previous experience of sparring (fighting) is ideal.

News: Clacton Competition 2026

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 10:30:00 GMT

Well done to those who competed in the recent comp in Clacton!

Well done to the students who competed at the EUKF English Karate Open, English Karate Open Championship on Sunday 1st March at Clacton Sport Centre. Not only did they step up to compete and challenge themselves, but they earned medals which shows all of the hard work and determination that they put in along the way.

Competitions play a vital role in a karate student’s development. They provide a structured opportunity to test skills under pressure, offering a clear measure of how far each student has progressed in their training. Facing new opponents helps students challenge themselves, adapt to different styles, and identify areas for improvement. Win or lose, competition sharpens focus, builds resilience, and fuels motivation. By stepping onto the mat, karate students gain invaluable experience that supports continuous growth—both in their technique and in their confidence.

For those who are starting out with competitions, we have friendly in-house competitions run by our own G2G instructors and helpers. The next inter club competition takes place on Saturday 4th July 2026 , with both Kumite (fighting) and Kata categories. Students who are Yellow belt and up, who are interested in entering either or both categories, please ask your instructor for more information. Some previous experience of sparring (fighting) is ideal.

Upcoming Easter Grading Course

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 11:08:23 GMT

Our next grading course is coming up on 7-10 April

Those students who are working towards their next belt might be interested in our Easter Grading Course which is coming up on 7th-10th April 2026 at St Johns Church Hall, Buckhurst Hill. Grading courses take place over multiple days and give students a chance to go over all of the techniques they need as well as grading up at the end if they are ready. Students up to Blue belt are assessed as part of the grading course (ongoing assessment), whereas Brown belt students are invited to an extra test at the end (like a normal grading) by the instructors if they are ready.

Please speak to your instructor for more information and to book onto the Easter Grading Course! Register your name with your Sensei ASAP to secure your place. Students will need a valid Karate licence to attend.

News: Latest Inter Club Comp

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 10:57:57 GMT

Read about our latest Inter Club Comp, a Team Tournament that took place on 7th March!

Our latest inter club competition took place on Saturday (7th March) in the form of a tag team tournament. Teams of 3 students competed against each other in a tag team kumite (sparring) match in Buckhurst Hill, Essex. These inter club competitions are an excellent opportunity to use the sparring skills you've learnt in your lessons, and gain experience under pressure (always useful for those looking to grade or move on to bigger competitions) - but in a friendly club environment! The day was led by G2G club instructors and helpers, with students from our different locations taking part.

" Well done to everyone who took part in our inter club team tournament today!! Whatever place you came in at, we hope it was a good experience and that you can all see the progression you’re making……that’s the true goal." - Sensei Julia, 7th March.

We have more Inter Club competitions coming up, including an individuals competition on Saturday 4th July 2026 , with both Kata and Kumite categories. Students who are Yellow belt or higher, who are interested in entering either or both categories, please ask your instructor for more information. Some previous experience of sparring (fighting) is ideal.

For those who are moving on to an international competition experience, we have already selected competitors to enter the Malta Open in late March 2026. Congratulations to those who have worked hard and stepped up to that level! Enjoy the experience of travelling as a team and competing abroad!

News: the latest Grading (Feb 2026)

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 14:21:46 GMT

Over 70 students earnt their next belt at the grading

Our latest grading took place on Saturday (28th Feb 2026) with over 70 students taking part. This included 38 white belts, 34 red belts, 4 yellow belts, 3 orange belts, 3 green belts and 1 brown belt.

Students are assessed at gradings by a panel of instructors, with 5 Sensei (instructors) and a Sempei working to oversee this particular grading. Students were tested on their knowledge and performance of the syllabus techniques to a given standard, and we are pleased to say that all of the students were able to pass the grading to achieve their next belt. This shows how hard everyone worked to get to this stage, so well done to everyone who took part.

Upcoming Easter Grading Course

Those students who are working towards their next belt might be interested in our Easter Grading Course which is coming up on 7th-10th April. Grading courses take place over multiple days and give students a chance to go over all of the techniques they need as well as grading up at the end if they are ready. Students up to Blue belt are assessed as part of the grading course (ongoing assessment), whereas Brown belt students are invited to an extra test at the end (like a normal grading) by the instructors if they are ready.

Please speak to your instructor for more information and to book onto the Easter Grading Course!

Christmas Party raises funds

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 17:14:49 GMT

Party goers had a great time and raised money for our team to compete abroad

The G2G Karate Christmas Party 2024 raised £823.31 for our team competing internationally! Generous donations came from drinks for the bar, a delicious food buffet and raffle prizes. A special mention to Filip who secured £75 donation that also contributed to the funds raised.

Party goers were treated to a Santa vs Grinch fight and music to get into the festive spirit. It was a wonderful event bringing the members of the karate club together during the Christmas holidays! Awards were also given out as part of the event, marking an end to the Karate year and reflecting on our achievements.

Congratulations to the award winners of 2024-

Faizah Hussain (Best student - Sensei Tasha's club)
Michaela Raat (Best student - Sensei Sophie’s club)
Lucas Watts (Best student - Sensei Julia’s club)
Filip Kozinski (Most improved student - Sensei Rob's elite class)
Gabriel Ahmed (Coaches student)
Ella Zrinzo (Student of the year)

Also, a huge congratulations to Sensei Tasha who was awarded her 4th Dan and to Sempei Lucas who was awarded his 2nd Dan!!

Thank you to all the helpers who contributed to organising and setting up this event, this would not have been possible without them! If you would like to get involved in future fundraising events please ask your instructor about the fundraising team. And look out for the next event soon!

A special mention to our DJ Rio for creating the perfect soundtrack for our event and getting everyone into the festive spirit. If anyone would like his services in the future - please contact him on 07867 877000.

Merry Christmas everyone!

ESKF Gold Cup 2024

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 22:50:22 GMT

Photos from the recent comp at Sportsdock

The ESKF Gold Cup Open Karate Championships took place yesterday (27th October 2024) at the University of East London Sportsdock. G2G students attended, well done to everyone who took part!

WUKF European Championships – 2024

Thu, 24 Oct 2024 06:45:41 GMT

A quick post about the WUKF European Karate Championships

This is just a quick post about the students who attended the recent Europeans Championships.

The students fought with heart and soul , winning their team fights and battling their way to individual quarter-finals against some really strong and talented opponents. We're really proud of them considering they are all relatively new to this level of competition. As the saying goes “sometimes you win , sometimes you learn!” Well done guys, the future looks bright!!

Competition details:

Wednesday 9 ^th to Sunday 13 ^th October 2024.
Country: Poland.
City: Warsaw (Pruszków), Poland

A record-breaking European Championships participation of 1725 athletes from 25 countries. Read more about the competition on the WUKF website https://www.wukf-karate.org/wukf-european-karate-championships-success/

Recent Kumite Seminar & Competition

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 11:10:10 GMT

Kumite Seminar with Sensei Lefevre followed by a competition in Clacton

A team from G2G recently joined Sensei Lefevre for a kumite seminar (pictured above). This type of extra training comes in handy at competitions, for example the competition at Clacton on 22nd September - photos below!

Malta Open 2024

Fri, 27 Sep 2024 06:35:23 GMT

EUKF places 3rd in the competition

We had a fantastic competition in Malta with our students bringing home 10 medals between them…..1 gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze. Overall our EUKF federation came 3rd in the championships, which is a fab result!!

This is still a young and relatively inexperienced squad so the future looks bright for them all…… with the WUKF European championships in Poland at the end of the year we’ll be working hard towards improving and building on the experience gained in Malta.

Many thanks to everyone who supported the fundraising efforts which helped make this trip possible for our students!! Onwards and upwards.

Please note: For any of our students who aspire to join our team, please watch out for our upcoming G2G in-house squad trainings and competitions!

Congratulations to our new black belts

Mon, 06 Nov 2023 23:19:38 GMT

Congratulations to Ella Zrinzo, Rahul Gadhaus and Joshua Tucker on achieving your Black belts!

Great standard of grading, fantastic effort and welcome to our Black belt family!

Senigallia Course

Heenan_jules@hotmail.com (Julia Heenan) — Thu, 11 Aug 2022 10:25:13 GMT

Some of our students were fortunate to be able to attend a training course recently, with the French, multi-world champion, Christophe Pinna.

The course was held in beautiful Senigallia, in the Marche region of Italy. The course was re-instated this year and It was a wonderful opportunity to meet up with old friends from all around the world and to meet new ones too!

Our Students enjoyed a fun, informative new experience and learned some exciting new kumite techniques and strategies to take home and work on.

Summer course success

Sun, 01 Sep 2019 14:54:29 GMT

Another successful summer course took place 19-22nd August, with over 70 students attending at St Johns Church hall in Buckhurst Hill.

These courses give students a chance to practice everything they need to know for their next belt. Although there is no automatic upgrade, and the assessed grading is only up to blue belt, many students did perform well enough to move up to their next belt as part of the course. A number of brown belts were selected to take a traditional grading at the end of the course and also graded up.

Whether you graded up or not, you all worked extremely hard during the weeks course and each of you improved so much! If you didn’t get your next belt, you are at least much closer to your goal now.

All of us in the instructor team are immensely proud of how far you’ve come.

News: Latest Kata Course 2019 (The Kung Fu Connection)

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 12:25:05 GMT

Attendees learnt about the Chinese influences in Karate. And tried some jumping Kung Fu kicks.

Our latest Kata Course took place on 2nd March, with a great turnout of students across two sessions (Yellow to Blue belts, and then Brown and Black belts). The Kata Course included a Kung Fu warmup and techniques, a brief overview of the history of Karate, some bunkai (analysis of kata) tools, and a section of the kata "Chatan Yara Kushanku" with some possible applications.

The Shito Ryu kata known as "Chatan Yara Kushanku" is credited to Chatan Yara, an Okinawan martial artist in the 1700s who is believed to have spent many years studying in China to broaden his martial art knowledge. This kata is one of a few different Kushanku kata in Karate, which arose after a Chinese martial artist referred to as Kushanku visited Okinawa in 1756. These kata are widely practised in Karate today, and it is believed that one version was even used as source material in creating the 5 Pinan kata that all of our students learn before progressing to more advanced kata. Chatan Yara Kushanku seems to show more Chinese flavour than the other Kushanku kata that we practise from the Anko Itosu lineage. It is likely that Chatan Yara learnt from Kushanku, given the kata's name, but also likely that he would have drawn on the knowledge from his studies in China when passing on his kata. It is this influence that can still be seen in the kata today.

It was an interesting exercise to practise techniques and applications directly from a Kung Fu style, and then examine Chatan Yara Kushanku to look for those Kung Fu connections. This gave us a different angle when thinking about possible applications! We also examined possible links within the Pinan kata. All of that, plus some jumping Kung Fu kicks!

Improving Performance (Kata Course)

Sat, 20 Oct 2018 14:12:25 GMT

Students worked on their Kata performance at our latest Kata course

Our latest Kata course Performance for Competition took place in Buckhurst Hill on 13th October. Working on Kata performance, which is useful for both competitions and gradings, those who attended worked on characteristics of a great kata such as strength, speed and timing along with techniques to improve mental strength under pressure. We also covered how to learn and practise more effectively, and how music can be used when practising.

This is the latest Kata course with Sensei Tom. Past courses have included Hard & Soft in Kata and The Meaning of Kata (Bunkai) .