Over forty years of Goju Ryu karate in Hertfordshire.
The Sasori Karate Dojo has been based in Hertfordshire since 1980. The name Sasori comes from the Japanese word for Scorpion — the name of the dojo where our founders, Chris and Marie, began their training in the early Seventies. (Dojo is the Japanese word for a training place.)
Chris and Marie have eighty years of experience between them and have trained with some of the top instructors of Martial Arts and Weapons from all over the world. The chief instructor at the Dojo is Shihan Chris Green, who holds 7th Dan in Goju Ryu Karate and 3rd Dan in Shotokan Karate. He is assisted by his wife Sensei Marie, who holds 5th Dan in Goju Ryu Karate and 1st Dan in Shotokan Karate.
Goju Ryu is one of the lesser known styles of karate in this country, made more famous by the Karate Kid films. Although Goju is the main style taught at the Dojo, some Shotokan Kata, weapons and Ju Jitsu are also taught.
The Sasori Karate Dojo is linked to the Shoseikan Group, which has direct links to Japan. Shihan Chris was the chief instructor of Goshukan in this country. All new students are registered members with the relevant bodies so that insurance is fully covered — one membership fee covers all.
In 1989 Chris and Marie were chosen to represent Great Britain at the JKF National Championships held in Takamatsu, Japan. Prior to the competition they underwent extensive training in Choshi, Kyoto and Tokyo. They have learned much from their experiences in Japan and this is passed on to all their students.
In 1992 Chris and Marie took a party of nine children to Japan — they believe this is the first time such a trip had been organised. The children gained a wealth of knowledge both culturally and in Martial Arts. During the trip they took part in the Northern Japan Championships and came away with seven trophies!
In 1997 Chris and Marie made yet another trip to Japan, where they had extensive meetings with Japanese instructors. They have continued making trips to Japan to keep up to date with training methods and pass this on to their students.
Chris and Marie visited Japan again in 2023 and discovered parts of Japan they had never been to before. They also spent three days walking the Nakosendo Trail — the old samurai postal route from Kyoto to Tokyo — and spent time with Ishihara Kancho, being honoured by being added to his Shihankai.
The Dojo has always aimed to have a friendly atmosphere where students come to socialise as well as train hard. We hold separate classes for children and adults, as the teaching methods for each are very different. We find this works extremely well and the standard of all our students is very high.
Chris and Marie have found that having a male and female element instructing the classes is very advantageous, especially when teaching younger students. We occasionally have visiting Japanese instructors, and seminars are held in Great Britain at least once a year.
We hold two in-house competitions a year for our students and also offer the opportunity to enter outside competitions. We have enjoyed considerable success on the competition circuit.
