Champs set to host top karateka action

Nearly 400 competitors and Argentinian team to descend on Fish River Sun

SOUTH African Shotokan Karate Academy (SASKA) affiliate, East Cape Shotokan-Ryu (ECSR) will convene the third of three major karate championship events staged at the Fish River Sun Hotel and Country Club Resort this year.

The World Union of Karate-do Federations (WUKF) Africa Invitational and SASKA National Championships starts today and continues until Sunday.

ECSR has dojos situated in Grahamstown, Port Alfred, Kenton-on-Sea, Fort Beaufort, Alicedale and at Rhodes University. Training at ECSR is overseen by head instructor, Gary Grapentin (sixth Dan black belt) and a number of instructors.

The championship will see nearly 400 competitors of all ages and levels competing in various individual and team categories.

A further boost for the championship is the confirmed participation of a team from Argentina, as well as five South African karateka who were medallists at the WUKF World Championships held in Ireland earlier this year.

Given the number of experienced South African karateka already confirmed to participate, the WUKF Africa Invitational and SASKA National Championships promises to produce karate-do of an exceptional standard.

Highly-rated current United World Karate South Africa (UWKSA) and SASKA grand champion, Nicholas Gaston Bellegarde (Cobras Dojo, Alberton) is expected to be one of the top contenders in the Senior Men’s Black Belt categories.

SASKA was founded in 1990 by Shihan Koos Burger (eighth Dan black belt), a student of the late Japanese karate master Kancho Taiji Kase (1929–2004), founder of Shotokan-Ryu Kase-Ha. Burger is also the first vice president of the WUKF, one of the largest international all-styles karate sporting federations.

SASKA has affiliated dojos and instructors throughout South Africa, as well as in the United States, and is nationally and internationally respected for its high technical standards.

Internationally, SASKA holds affiliation to the WUKF and United Wold Karate (UWK). SASKA is also closely associated with the International Shotokan-Ryu Karate-Do Shihankai (ISKS).

The Fish River Sun Hotel and Country Club Resort will provide a unique and atmospheric setting on the scenic Sunshine Coast of the Eastern Cape.

The championship venue will comprise five competition arenas, each enhanced by overhead lighting, computerised scoring systems, comfortable ring-side seating for spectators and air-conditioning.

In addition, the championship experience will provide the opportunity for participants, officials, families and supporters of karate to enjoy a holiday at the Fish River Sun.

The championship will be preceded by training sessions with Burger and Argentinian team coach, Sensei Damian Bidabehere. The weekend’s activities will conclude with a Sea Gashuku (outdoor training), which is expected to attract a large number of karateka.

The chief organisers of the championship are the ECSR’s Gary Grapentin and Maureen de Jager. For further information, contact Grapentin at

or for accommodation inquiries at the Fish River Sun, contact (040) 676-1101 or e-mail:

FULL CRY: Current United World Karate South Africa and South African Shotokan Karate Academy grand champion Nicholas Gaston Bellegarde is expected to be one of the top contenders in the Senior Men’s Black Belt Categories at the karate championship at...

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