Honouring 50 years of practising Shotokan Karate, Sensei Michael Keohane of IJKA Passage West has been awarded the 'CMAP Lifetime Achievement Award' at the prestigious Cork Martial Arts Promotions Awards ceremony, an award night commonly referred to as the Oscars of the Martial Arts world.
Held at the Oriel House Hotel in Ballincollig, a fantastic night of celebrations was had, during which Michael was celebrated for his dedication and accomplishments in karate over the past fifty years.
The event was a night to remember, beginning with a wine & canape reception and a meet & greet with dignitaries such as the Lord Mayor of Cork. The winners elect were then honoured with full video highlights on big screens, before humbly accepting the prestigious awards in the presence of their family and friends.
For the past fifty years, Michael has dedicated his life to practising, teaching and promoting his beloved martial art to karate enthusiasts at home and abroad. He has instilled his knowledge in thousands of students, and has produced hundreds of very skilled and internationally recognised black belt students.
As a senior member of the International Japan Karate Association (IJKA) Europe, he is one of a handful of non-Japanese karate practitioners to have been awarded the rank of 6th Dan black belt, by world-renowned karate master Sensei Kato (9th Dan) of Japan.
After recently passing an extremely challenging three-day grading examination, he was publicly singled out by the Japanese Master as being 'a role model for all karate practitioners to follow.' The Master added: 'This man is 72 years of age and he is still training. You must all use this as an example. You must never stop training. This is true karate. Karate is a way of life.'
To Michael, karate is very much a philosophy of life, rather than just a series of movements. 'Your karate practice must extend beyond the walls of the training hall, to a way of life in how you conduct yourself, how you face life’s many challenges and how you overcome those challenges,' says Michael. 'This to me is what karate is all about. This is true karate practice. How I achieve this is by embedding myself in the Japanese culture and carrying myself in the same way as the Japanese Masters.'
Michael was nominated for the award by his students at Passage West Karate club, who believe this timely award is the perfect accolade to mark such a remarkable and distinguished karate career. This is one award that will be very much cherished by this truly great Cork martial arts master.
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