Five Karate-ka headed to the Tokyo Olympics train together in Okinawa in their quest for gold

Five Karate-ka headed to the Tokyo Olympics train together in Okinawa in their quest for gold

All Japan National Team Karate-ka training together in Okinawa (from the right) Takuya Uemura, Ryo Kiyuna, Kiyou Shimizu, Arata Kinjo, and Emiri Iwamoto. March 14, Okinawa Prefectural Budokan in Naha (photograph by Daisuke Nakagawa)


March 15, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

Three Okinawan members of the All Japan National Team, Ryo Kiyuna (Konan High School, Okinawa International University, Ryueiryu Ryuhokai), Arata Kinjo (Mirai Engineering High School, Okinawa International University, Ryueiryu Ryuhokai), and Takuya Uemura (Konan High School, Okinawa International University, Ryueiryu Ryuhokai), joined with two female competitors, Kiyou Shimizu and Emiri Iwamoto, to train at the Okinawa Prefectural Budokan in Naha.

The training ran through March 15. This is the first time Okinawa has hosted an Olympic training session that brought together the top karate-ka in the world in Kiyuna and Shimizu.

The athletes were trained by Ryueiryu Ryuhokai president and seven-straight world championship winner Tsuguo Sakumoto, who coached them on the interconnectivity and spirit of Ryueiryu technique, instilling into the athletes bodies the forms and movements.

The Olympic-bound Kiyuna said, “With each tournament I win, the more and more I want to race towards the Olympics,” and Shimizu commented, “Looking towards 2020, I want to perform a martial arts demonstration that leaves nothing to regret.”

(English translation by T&CT and Sam Grieb)

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