John Van Weenen (born 26 August 1941,
Enfield, Middlesex, England)
[Van Weenen, J:''In Funakoshi's Footsteps'' John van Weenen, 2004] is an 8th Dan
karateka
(; ; Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fujian ...
and
humanitarian.
Van Weenen was graded to 1st Dan by Moss Hollis in 1966, (his diploma is reproduced in his auto biography 'In Funakoshi's Footsteps'), before travelling to Japan in 1967 to train at the invitation of Masutatsu Oyama at the Kyokushinkai Headquarters. In fact, John decided to train under Hirokazu Kanazawa and registered at the JKA Honbu in Tokyo.
He started the Traditional Association of Shotokan Karate (T.A.S.K.) in Bedford, Bedfordshire, whose guest instructors included
Bob Poynton
Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to:
Places
*Mount Bob, New York, United States
*Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica
People, fictional characters, and named animals
* Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
*Bob (surname ...
,
Ticky Donovan
David 'Ticky' Donovan OBE (born 1947) is a British karate competitor and coach. He was the coach and manager of both the British and English national karate teams, from 1977 until he retired from that role in 2008.
"brentwood-ishinryu.co.uk ...
and Sean Roberts.
Van Weenen is the Executive Director of Task Force Albania, a humanitarian organisation that has provided over £7 million in aid to Albania since the end of communism in the country in 1991. In 1993, he was the first person to receive the Order of Mother Teresa in Albania for his work, and this was re-presented by Mother Teresa herself in Calcutta. In 1999, he was awarded the MBE by Prince Charles and the citation read: 'For services to the children of Albania'
Later that year he established the British Children's Library network, and in November the first library was inaugurated in Tirana, Albania's Capital. It was opened by
Charles, Earl Spencer in honour of his late sister,
Diana, Princess of Wales. A second library was opened in 2001, in Durrës, by Sir Norman Wisdom.
Professor Dr Sali Berisha, Prime Minister of Albania, said that Van Weenen “quite uniquely, turned his martial arts expertise into missionary skills.” In 2001, Berisha was a guest on an episode of
This Is Your Life, dedicated to van Weenen. Other guests included Charles Spencer and Anila Bido. Berisha would later request that Van Weenen become the Honorary Consul in Great Britain for Albania He took up this position in 2012.
John Van Weenen stood for election in South West Bedfordshire for United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) in 2015, but was not elected.
Controversy
In 2015, Former UKIP candidate John Van Weenen plead guilty to common assault on his partner.
Bibliography
*''Beginners' Guide to Shotokan Karate: Beginner to Black Belt'' (1983)
*''Advanced Shotokan Karate Kata Volume 1'' (1999)
*''Task Force Albania: An Odyssey'' (1998)
*''Task Force Albania - the Kosovo Connection'' (2001)
*''In Funakoshi's Footsteps: The Autobiography of John Van Weenen 8th Dan'' (2004)
*''Karate for Children: Vol 1 - Basics'' (2007)
*''The Ten Pound Poms'' (2018)
*''Walter Hagen's Caddie'' (2020)
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Weenen, John
1941 births
Shotokan practitioners
British male karateka
Living people
Members of the Order of the British Empire
People from Enfield, London