Our Karate Journey Thus Far…
Shinyuukai recently celebrated our 6th anniversary.
We have come a long way since the very beginning, so let’s take a trip down memory lane!
Back in 2015, both Shihan Robert and Sensei Cindy kickstarted the Shinyuukai journey. The Karate couple left their previous teaching post and started their own classes at the SIngapore Airlines Training Centre. There were only a handful of students training then.
In 2016, they were determined to find their own training ground. Eventually, they decided to make 328B King George Avenue the home of warriors, and our dojo has grown from here ever since.
First few training sessions before the official opening
On the 9th of August, as you have probably seen in our previous post, was the dojo’s official opening.
Then, we were invited by Shihan Phun Yao Sing over to his dojo in Penang, West Malaysia, to train together.
This was also the year we began our East Malaysia Zone Shitoryu Karate (EMZSK) Championship journey. The 10th EMZSK championship was held in Miri, Sarawak, that year and we sent a squad of only 6 participants. Small but mighty, we came back with a total of 3 Gold, 2 Silver, and 1 Bronze medal.
It was certainly a joyful end to an amazing year, and a great start to our competition journey.
February 2017 marks one of Shinyuukai’s greatest achievements. With the help of Shihan Phun, Shinyuukai was introduced into Shitoryu International Karate Do Kai.
Thus, with great honour, we were invited to participate in the International Shitoryu Karate-Do Takai, held in Osaka, Japan. 24 #sykwarriors travelled and participated in the Technical Seminar.
The #sykfamily steadily grew bigger and stronger. Alongside our warriors’ family members, we went for a hike at MacRitchie Reservoir; a lovely opportunity for bonding through casual exercise.
In December that year, we participated in our 2nd EMZSK Championship held in Kuching, this time with more participants and a more impressive medal haul. We also won the Overall Champion trophy for the tournament!
To end off yet another outstanding year, we organised a Christmas Party at the dojo. Our warriors worked hard, and know how to play hard too!
2018 saw many events and competitions take place as we connected with friends from Australia, Brunei, and Bintulu.
In September, Master Loh Kong Wing brought along his warriors from Melbourne, Australia to visit and train together with our #sykwarriors.
In November, we participated in the 1st Shitokai Brunei Open Karate Championship. There, we had the honour to meet the princess and Sultan of Brunei too!
Of course, we ended off the year with the annual EMZSK Championship once again, this time in Bintulu. As our warriors grew in skill and numbers, we successfully defended our Overall Champion title that year!
…our second Christmas celebration in the dojo!
Our overseas adventures continued as we encountered and reunited with many international counterparts in 2019.
We participated in our 2nd International Shitoryu Karate-Do Takai, in Perth, Australia
This was followed by a visit to our humble dojo by Soke Mabuni herself, together with many Japanese Shihans. We played tour guide to show them around sunny Singapore too.
Our friends from the Philippines also visited. Sensei Denisu Akino brought his students over for an exchange training session.
Master Loh also returned with more students! It was truly a joy to train together with old and new friends.
In 2019, the EMZSK Championship was held in Sabah, Malaysia. It was a very special competition for us as we travelled with our largest contingent yet - a family 60 members strong!
We welcomed 2020 with open arms, looking forward to creating more memories together.
However, the Covid-19 pandemic struck. This put an abrupt stop to face-to-face training in the dojo. Yet, that certainly did not stop us. We shifted our trainings online over Zoom, and Shihan Robert introduced a Rhythmic Kumite class every Saturday that encouraged non-members to join our #sykwarriors in the exercises at home.
Even while the world seemed to stop, we never stopped competing! We took part in virtual competitions and continued to make achievements. Our warriors were challenged yet again as we adapted to recording videos that were sent for judging, instead of participating on-site.
(PKL Karate Idol2 Virtual Tournament, Philippines) - 4 golds, 5 silvers, 4 bronze
(KUS Virtual Karate Tournament) - 2 golds, 1 silver
As restrictions eased slightly, we managed to continue our Christmas tradition together. Although it was just a handful of us that year, we still managed to set up the Christmas tree in the dojo together to usher in some festive cheer.
2021 was a rather quiet year. In October, we participated in our 2nd KUS tournament. This was our first on-site competition in a while and presented more challenges as we had to adapt to competing with social distancing measures in place.
Finally, as of the year 2022 so far, we held our very first self-executed, internal Junior Championship in the dojo! Check out our gallery, blog post and social media (Facebook & Instagram) for more
Throughout the years, we are proud to have been featured in the media on several occasions.
From Mothership’s “Legit Old” series, to a Straits Times feature, to being part of the #ThisIsSG Campaign.
On set for #ThisIsSG Campaign
Check out the full features below:
Mothership:
#ThisIsSG: https://www.facebook.com/111076583643306/posts/pfbid0aX4oPpMhpRmcpQetXMAuGu78Y1CrqLyVDSq8amNurxMrymTx2YhSGpKa35yT9QLRl/
Straits Times:
Our journey would not have been possible if not for passion, hard work, and a strong community. Shinyuukai is definitely a second home to all our members, and a place we hold close to our hearts as we strive to walk this journey together as one family.
Head over to our social media Instagram (@shinyuukai) and Facebook page (Shitoryu Singapore Karate-Do Kai, Shinyuu Kai) for more updates and photos on what our #sykwarriors get up to. Do remember to give us a follow, like our posts, and share our stories with your friends and relatives!
So what are you waiting for? Our motivation is your cultivation, and our doors are open to all. Come join our family for many action-filled adventures together!