Counties Shotokan Karate Whenuakite

And…..
Whenuakite Counties Shotokan Karate now has its first Shodan.
Huge congratulations to Jake - you did yourself and everyone else in the dojo proud.
When we started the dojo 4 years ago it was a dream to have our our own home grown black belt - and through all your hard work and commitment to the club and art you have brought it to fruition.
CONGRATULATIONS!

Small group of three tonight for our grading - small group, but big hearts, big spirits, and super big smiles when they got their new belts.
Well earned guys, we are (always are) so very proud of the effort you all put in and what you have achieved to date!
Huge thank you to our fabulous brown belts for coming in and supporting our grading students - your spirit and commitment is inspirational.
We love the beautiful camaraderie and community that is our Whenuakite Dojo.
It was heartwarming and magical to have both Sensei and Shihan online to grade our students - an inspirational duo we are so lucky to have in our club - thank you both for everything you are and do!
Just one more to grade this weekend… watch this space!

End of year grading for our guys!
So proud of you all for the efforts you put in.
A great way to end the 2025 year, and a fun time had by all at our end of year prizegiving.
We missed seeing Sensei Ray, but a huge thanks to Shihan Denise for stepping up to the plate so we could all grade! You were fabulous ❤️ Also thanks to Shelly for helping out.
Anyways, so many photos, and all with so much fun and character - I couldn’t decide on just a few to post, so here they all are!
Oh, and see you all back on Tuesday the 27th of January!

Small team today at the tournament hosted by Counties Shotokan Karate in Pukekohe, but they sure made their mark!
Sensei Steve got 2nd in his Kata division, Luke got a well fought 2nd in Kumite, Kassi got a second in kata, Jake and Amelia earned 2nds in Kata, with Jake fighting hard to come out on top in his kumite division and Amelia doing the same to get a 2nd in hers.
Proud doesn’t begin to describe how we feel at the end of the day - you guys worked hard and smashed it!
Thank you Counties Shotokan Karate team and Sensei Ray for another awesomely run tournament! A pleasure to see all the outstanding spirit and skills on display!

Fantastic work again from our Counties Shotokan Karate students at grading last night!
All passing their grading and moving on to the next steps in their journey.
Thank you to all of the whanau for the support you give these wonderful young people, and to our brown belts (who we somehow managed to miss getting a photo of at the end of the night - apologies!), thank you for supporting our coloured belts through the evening, as well as completing your own gradings.
Of course, none of this could be possible without Sensei Ray. Thank you for being there to grade our students and supporting our dojo!