Seido Karate was founded in 1976 by Kaicho Tadashi Nakamura.
Born in Japan in 1942 Kaicho began his Karate journey at an early age and rose to become the worldwide Chief Instructor for Kyokushinkai Kaikan Karate. Kaicho Nakamura travelled to New York City in 1966 to bring the Kyokushin Karate style of Sosai, (Masutatsu Oyama) to the United States. He was a leading student in the Kyokushin-kai, holding a seventh-degree black belt in that system. He was also a renowned competitor, including among his victories a famous knock-out of the Thai kickboxing champion in a 1962 match between representatives of Muay Thai and the Kyokushin-kai.
Kaicho Nakamura began teaching in a small studio atop the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Slowly, his school grew, and Kyokushin Karate began to take hold in the United States. By 1971, there were over thirty affiliated Kyokushin-kai schools in America; in May of that year, the North American Honbu (Headquarters) was established, with Kaicho Nakamura overseeing Kyokushin Karate in North American.
But this growth was not all positive. Kaicho Nakamura began to feel that the growth of Kyokushin Karate in the U.S. was being pursued without sufficient regard for the quality of the instruction and training. He also began to find differences in philosophy with his longtime mentor, Sosai Oyama.
In 1976 Kaicho Nakamura respectfully withdrew from the Kyokushin-kai and began to build Seido Juku, "the school of the Sincere Way". The path was not easy - some extremists within the Kyokushin-kai moved to banish him from the martial arts world, and he was defamed, vilified, and even shot! (The complete story is told in his autobiography, The Human Face of Karate.)
But he persevered and built Seido Karate into a world-wide organization. Today the Seido Honbu in New York is one of the largest martial arts schools in the world, and thousands of students around the world train in affiliated Seido schools – today, there are Seido dojos all over the world.
Seido Karate was founded in 1965 by one of the pioneers of Kyokushin in New Zealand - Doug Holloway. Sensei Holloway departed in 1969 to further his studies and the dojo was then headed by Eiko Hanshi Renzie Hanham who still holds the position of head Instructor.
The Christchurch Shibu Seido dojo holds an impressive history. Many men, women and children who have touched their bare feet to the dojo floor here have excelled in sport, business and life in general. The spirit of Seido karate is to train together. You can now be a part of this.
Founded in 1990 here at New Brighton Seido Karate, we are proud to be a family-focused club where families can train together. We are a not-for-profit organization with affordable fees used to cover the cost of our hall rental and equipment as needed. We currently have students ranging from 6 to 83 years of age. You are never too young or too old to begin training and there is no set fitness level to begin your journey.
At New Brighton Seido Karate, everyone is encouraged to realize their own individual potential. For those seeking competition with others, they will find it, but the real competition is within yourself. Self-awareness is the key factor throughout your training in Seido. Whilst karate is an excellent means of physical conditioning, the real purpose is the cultivation of character so that the students function with wholeness and balance in society.