Guyanese Karate Master heads world organization

Feb 16, 2011 Sports

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World renowned Canadian Guyanese karate personality, Master Frank Woon-A-Tai, 8th dan, recently announced the formation of his new world karate organization, the International Karate Daigaku (IKD). Daigaku means university or college in Japanese. The announcement came on the 30th Anniversary of his first karate dojo in Canada.
The new organization has strong West Indian roots.
Well known for his development of karate in Guyana, the Caribbean region, and Canada, Master Woon-A-Tai, a native of Georgetown, is closely associated with the Caribbean Karate College (CKC) as President and, until recently, the Japan Karate Association (JKA) and the International Shotokan Karate Federation (ISKF).
Master Frank Woon-A-Tai heads the organization as Kancho (founder) and interim Shuseiki Shihan (chief instructor) with Karate Master Dr. Dexter Shim, 7th Dan, of Trinidad and Tobago and Karate Master Maureen Woon-A-Tai, 7th dan, who is also originally from Guyana, as interim Deputy Chief Instructors. When they officially take office, their position, new rank, and title shall be announced. This is customary with leaders of world martial arts organizations. Maureen has made history by becoming the first woman to be a deputy chief instructor of a traditional world karate organization and she is an inspiration to women everywhere.
Surprisingly, IKD has over 70 karate dojos in Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and other provinces in Canada as well as dojos in Guyana, Suriname, French Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Barbados, Antigua, St. Vincent and other Islands to be named later. There are wonderful opportunities for expansion globally into Europe and Asia.
When the Guyana Karate College building is completed at Liliendaal it will also provide access for international karatekas to train and study in Guyana. It would be fitting, and as the membership grows throughout the world, for the First IKD World Cup to be held in Guyana, the birth place of its founder. Master Woon-A-Tai’s unique teaching method is very popular with the international karate community and his organization is expected to grow rapidly.
After leaving the ISKF, an organization he served faithfully for 40 years, Master Woon-A-Tai said he left due to unnamed persons who were envious of his accomplishment and success as well as politics. The ISKF was viewed by the JKA as a threat and Master Woon-A-Tai and the Caribbean Karate College were viewed as threats to the ISKF. Master Woon-A-Tai stated after careful contemplation and reflection he decided to resign because his integrity, loyalty to his teachers, and technical, and administrative abilities were compromised by false accusations and innuendo by the said unknown persons. His high position in the ISKF, the Caribbean, and his success hosting the World Cup in 2008, as well as the recently concluded Pan American karate championships in Guyana may have been factors. He further stated it is well known that the higher one moves up the ladder of success, there will always people ready to push one back down.
However, he has a positive outlook for his future in karate and views what happened as a blessing in disguise as he has vast support from over 70 dojos mentioned above in several countries. With such large and popular support he feels justified and holds no grudge against anyone. His impeccable karate credentials, including a University of Toronto Degree in Japanese Studies, 47 years karate experience, ability to organize on a large scale, and international standing makes him the ideal candidate as a world karate leader.
Master Woon-A-Tai decided the best course for his new organization to follow was to carry on the work that he and Dr. Shim had already started in developing the instructor training programme of CKC and to extend the work of the IKD in advancing scientific development and medical research on karate training.
The work of the IKD would not only benefit karate in the Caribbean, but also karate in other parts of the world. All aspects of karate shall be studied and analyzed including: philosophy, physical education and fitness, self defense, and sport. Master Woon-A-Tai has the support of several prominent medical doctors and PhDs to begin this work.
As he has said many times before, through education, he hoped karate could contribute socially by helping young people find direction in life and to break the cycle of crime and violence.
The IKD will be a democratic, open-minded organization, one of high technical standards as Master Woon-A-Tai is well known for. The IKD will continue in the tradition of Master Funakoshi and Master Nakayama, who first made karate accessible to people outside Japan, and who later refined karate to a very high level. It was also their aim to make karate a positive social influence by providing stability and structure to people’s lives through martial art training.
Master Woon-A-Tai wants his organization to be the Harvard or Oxford University of Karate. The slogan of the International Karate Daigaku is – Tradition in the 21st Century.

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