Senior Black Belt karateka Karimbhai moulds future stars in martial arts

Senior Black Belt karateka Kaizer Karimbhai (left) takes Duncan Towett through training in Nairobi on August 27, 2016. PHOTO | JAMES ONYANGO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The senior Black Belt karateka has devoted himself to martial arts for self defence, with results to show for it.
  • For Karimbhai, martial arts runs deep in the family. His brothers Murtaza and Munaver were both 4 Dan Black Belt holders.
  • Karimbhai chaired Nairobi Karate Do Association between 1980 and 1992, while the late Kutbuddin was chairman of the national federation from 1984 to 1988.
  • In 1984, the Japanese government honoured Karimbhai with a gold medal for helping promote karate by training newcomers.

For a man who took to martial arts more than five decades ago after an altercation in which he came out worse off, Kaizer Karimbhai looks several years younger. The senior Black Belt karateka has devoted himself to martial arts for self defence, with results to show for it.

At 70, he is displays physical fitness that can put a 25-year-old to shame. Watching him demonstrate self-defence skills to a group of budding karatekas in the heart of Nairobi’s Industrial Area this week, one clearly sees wisdom in the saying ‘a candle does not lose some of its light by lighting another.’

Spurred on by an ugly altercation early in life, Karimbhai, now 70, was among the first Kenyans to take to martial arts in 1962 and went on to earn a Black Belt.

“I had just completed my ‘O’ Level Cambridge exams when I got into a fight with an older, taller and stronger boy. I managed to crudely punch him, after which he threw me to the ground. Luckily for me, spectators intervened and saved me from being beaten up. The feeling of being suppressed and helpless gave me sleepless nights. I said to myself ‘never again’ and in 1961, I joined Nairobi Judo College. I proceeded to the UK in 1965 where I attained my Black Belt in Judo and Karate,” he says with a glow in his eyes.

Patricia Munguti (left) and Evelyn Ochanda train at Zahra Signs premises on August 27, 2016. PHOTO | JAMES ONYANGO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

After attaining his Black Belt, Karimbhai returned to Kenya and joined the family business in Nairobi which specialises in making signage for local companies.

From then on, the senior Black Belt karateka and instructor would devote himself to martial arts for self defence. For Karimbhai, martial arts runs deep in the family. His brothers Murtaza and Munaver were both 4 Dan Black Belt holders, while Karimbhai teamed up with his brother Kutbuddin and helped train other Kenyans in karate in the 70s.

Their efforts got a big boost with the arrival of top-notch instructor Yashio Tamura who was seconded to Kenya by the government of Japan.

The two brothers played a key role in training members of Kenya’s national teams that competed in Egypt, Madagascar and Zambia while also organising the Nairobi Provincial and National Championship.

Karimbhai chaired Nairobi Karate Do Association between 1980 and 1992, while the late Kutbuddin was chairman of the national federation from 1984 to 1988.

In 1984, the Japanese government honoured Karimbhai with a gold medal for helping promote karate by training newcomers, establishing karate clubs and organising karate contests in Kenya over many decades.

MENTAL FITNESS

Karimbhai looks 20 years younger than his age, something he attributes to physical and mental fitness that has naturally come with the sport. He conducts martial arts training sessions in two local universities and offers free training sessions in Nairobi for those willing to attain skills in martial arts.

“Martial arts instils fitness, physical and mental strength, flexibility, mobility, balance of body and mind, self discipline, team work and honesty, among other virtues,” he says midway during the demonstration.

“I want to make martial arts relevant in the 21st century by helping people apply it in their daily lives. All physical actions, including punching and kicking come from the brain. For example when one is flexible in thinking, one readily accommodates other people’s views. Also when one has a broader vision, one looks at nature with appreciation and is mindful of environmental preservation,” he says.

Senior Black Belt karateka Kaizer Karimbhai (second left, back row) with his trainees at Zahra Signs premises on August 27, 2016. PHOTO | JAMES ONYANGO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

“Martial arts has helped me become more confident in all situations in life. I have become a better person in all situations of life since I started karate sessions,” says Patricia Munguti, one of Karimbhai’s trainees.

Another trainee Evelynn Ochanda says: "Since I took to karate, I am always alert whenever I walk in the streets of Nairobi, my thinking and ways of handling issues in and out of office have improved greatly."

Yvonne Otieno, a trainee says: "With karate, one becomes rational in making important decisions, besides, it improves one's level of interaction."

While he continues to train future champions in the sport, he is a living testimony that age is no barrier for those willing to pursue martial arts.

“I train regularly outside on the green lawn at my residence when I am not teaching others. It is just thrilling under the blue sky, with the sounds of birds. The motivation comes from the feeling of tranquillity and good health. I have designed a 24-lesson course spread over six months on preliminary (basic) self defence. This is for those who are either pressed for time or do not want to make long-term commitment to martial arts. Many who have undertaken the course say their level of confidence improved, especially those who are prone to mugging from street boys. This is great inspiration to me because I teach free of charge,” Karimbhai says.