Shotokan Karate of America

Ohshima (born 1930) initiated his karate training at the Waseda University club in 1948, having already practiced sumo, kendo, and judo during his childhood. During that time, Funakoshi, then in his early 80s, continued teaching at Waseda and other universities. Notable seniors at Waseda included Noguchi, Egami, Kamata-Watanabe, Okuyama, and Shibuya. Ohshima became the club's captain in 1952.[2] In 1955, he moved to the University of Southern California for further studies and subsequently conducted his first karate practice in the United States. In 1957, he established the first university karate club at Caltech, and in 1959, he founded the Southern California Karate Association. As the organization expanded with the opening of additional dojos in California and across the U.S., it was renamed Shotokan Karate of America in 1969. In 2018, Ohshima officially retired as the shihan (head instructor) of SKA at the age of 88, with John Teramoto serving as the current SKA shihan.

SKA organizes biannual regional events called "Special Trainings" (or Tokubetsu kunren in Japanese), typically held in the winter and summer. These events consist of a series of intensive practice sessions conducted over a short period of time, fostering a sense of community. Special training is considered a vital component of SKA's training methodology, as Ohshima emphasizes:[3] "I hope that all Shotokan members will attend at least one special training because this is the essence of traditional martial arts practice." An important rule during Special Training is that participants are not allowed to leave until the event concludes officially; departing early without the chief instructor's permission results in automatic expulsion from SKA.[4]

SKA employs the ranking system established by Gichin Funakoshi, which comprises eight kyu ranks and five dan ranks. Notably, unlike many other karate organizations, there are no ranks beyond godan (5th dan), which Tsutomu Ohshima received from Funakoshi in 1957. The godan rank represents the highest distinction ever bestowed by Gichin Funakoshi. Within SKA, individuals who demonstrate exceptional skill and commit several decades to practice and teaching can aspire to attain this prestigious rank.

SKA provides a comprehensive list of SKA-affiliated dojos in the United States through its official website. Tsutomu Ohshima is acknowledged as the chief instructor for various SKA affiliates outside of the United States, which include:[5]

• Belgium Shotokan
• Canada Shotokan
• Curacao (operating as Shotokan Karate of Curacao)
• France Shotokan
• Gabon
• Germany Shotokan
• Greece Shotokan
• Israel Shotokan
• Japan (recognized as Shotokan Oshima Dojo Japan)
• Morocco
• Spain Shotokan
• Switzerland Shotokan

Furthermore, there are additional SKA-affiliated dojos located in Ethiopia, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Poland, and the United Kingdom.

• ska.org