Forget the karate kid ...we’re the black belts aged 149!
MANY senior citizens adopt a sporting hobby in the hope of remaining fighting fit in their retirement.
But a couple of Scots pensioners have taken it more literally than most – by qualifying as two of the oldest karate black belts in Britain, with a combined age of 149.
Sheila Stewart, 72, and Isabel Murray, 77, took up the sport in 2015 after Mrs Stewart began taking her grandchildren to classes.
The friends from Dalgety Bay, Fife, went through 12 grades before being awarded their coveted black belts.
Under the guidance of fifth dan instructor Sarah Queen, who created a special class to help them develop their skills, they have achieved one of the highest ranks in the martial art.
The two women spent four years honing their techniques at the Japan Karate Shoto
‘Would have done somersaults’
Federation (JKS) Scotland headquarters in Dunfermline, Fife.
To mark the milestone, the delighted pair were given special black belts from Japan with their names embroidered on them.
Former hairdresser Mrs Stewart said: ‘My grandchildren do karate and have fun. Sarah was willing to do a class for seniors, so I thought I’d give it a go.
‘Me and Isabel went along and the rest is history. We were a bit hesitant about our first grading but Sarah thought we could do it and we passed, so we did the next one.
‘It’s just gone on from there – it’s been amazing. We never, ever thought we’d get to the stage we’re at now.
‘We were ecstatic when we were given the belts. We couldn’t believe we’d got this far. If we could’ve done somersaults we would have.’
Mrs Murray, a former delivery driver, said: ‘It was something I never thought I’d achieve, but with perseverance and hard work I got there. Our first grading was in March 2016 and we went on from there, but it’s been hard work. At our age the brain sometimes likes to go to sleep.
‘It started off as fun and just a hobby, but we didn’t realise Sarah would take us further. It’s an achievement for her as well.’
Mrs Murray, a mother of two, admitted she had been hesitant about the combat element of the sport but said she was delighted that she had given it a go.
She said: ‘I’ve never been into fitness like the gym, but I am into walking. Sheila persuaded me and I’m glad she did. It’s fun, exercise and a bit of self-defence. People say “I don’t want to get on the wrong side of you now”.’ The two friends say they now plan to repeat the kata movements they performed in order to pass belt tests. Mrs Murray added: ‘It’d be nice to go through them and see how much we’ve remembered.’
Coach Miss Queen said: ‘They’re the oldest students in JKS at the moment. They’ve had to learn a certain group of techniques and come in and do them, which can be quite daunting at that age.
‘Originally it was never an aim to achieve black belt, but I pushed them to achieve it as quickly as they could.’
In 2015, Phyllis Rowley from Dudley, West Midlands, became Britain’s oldest karate expert after achieving a black belt at 78.