, was a Japanese Canadian
karate instructor and practitioner recognized as "The Father of Canadian Karate" by
Black Belt Magazine
''Black Belt'' is an American magazine covering martial arts and combat sports. The magazine is based in Valencia, California, and is one of the oldest titles dedicated to martial arts in the United States.
History and profile
The magazine w ...
. Although mainly responsible for establishing the
Chito-ryu style in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, Tsuruoka is also known as founder of his own karate style known as Tsuruoka Ryu.
Masami Tsuruoka kept Chito-ryu karate before the Canadian public from 1958 to 1968 through newspaper articles, magazine articles, and frequent public appearances, demonstrations and exhibitions across Canada.
He formed the National Karate Association of Canada (presently called
Karate Canada) in 1964, followed by the Tsuruoka Karate-do Federation in 1979. Tsuruoka was appointed a member of the
Order of Ontario
The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...
in 1998 for his significant contribution to
martial arts.
Early years
Mas Tsuruoka was born in
Cumberland, British Columbia
Cumberland is an incorporated village municipality east of Perseverance Creek, near the east coast of central Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The Comox Valley community is west of BC Highway 19 and is by road about northwest of Nanaimo and ...
. The Tsuruoka family, as was standard with Japanese families living in Canada at that time, was placed in '
Internment Camps
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
' during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, first in Tashimi, B.C., and later at
Roseberry.
In 1945, after the end of World War II, Tsuruoka moved with his father to Japan and at age seventeen (1946) began the study of Chito-ryu karate in
Kumamoto
is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2.
had a population of 1,461,000, ...
,
Japan, under Dr. Tsuyoshi Chitose. He received his first degree
black belt at age twenty (1949), and after continuing his study and receiving his third degree black belt, moved back to Canada in 1956.
When Tsuruoka began studying with Chitose, karate was at the point where two eras crossed, the old ways of Okinawa and the new ways of post-war Japan. Tsuruoka was one of the first students of the group that was to reshape modern karate.
Canadian Chito-Ryu
Although Tsuruoka first began teaching
judo
is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...
,
[ in 1957 he also began teaching karate in a small gym on ]Danforth Avenue
Danforth Avenue (informally also known as the Danforth) and Danforth Road are two historically-related arterial streets in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Danforth ''Avenue'' is an east-west street that begins in Old Toronto at the Prince Edward ...
in Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Ontario. In 1958, he rented a larger space and established the first karate dojo in Canada.
In 1962 Tsuyoshi Chitose recognized Tsuruoka's accomplishments by appointing him as Chief Representative of Chito-ryu karate in Canada. In 1967 as part of his efforts to promote Chito-ryu karate in Canada, Tsuruoka invited Dr. Chitose, along with Mamoru Yamamoto, later noted as founder of Yoshukai Karate, and some of his students including Mike Foster, to Canada, where they conducted demonstrations, a clinic, and presided over the Canadian National Karate Association tournament. The event was held at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre's Nisei Karate Club.
During the occupation of Japan, a number of American service personnel had trained at the Yoseikan Chito-ryu ‘’hombu dojo" (headquarters) in Kumamoto. In the early sixties Tsuruoka contacted these former students in an effort to expand the Chito-ryu karate organization in North America. One of the former students was Bill Dometrich of Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
, who traveled to Canada to train with Tsuruoka. Dometrich was eventually appointed the Chief Representative of Chito-ryu karate in the United States.
In 1962 Tsuruoka organized the first karate tournament in Canada, "The First Canadian Karate Open Championship." In the same year he began teaching karate at the University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...
, which became the first university karate club in Canada, and held the first summer camp called Kamp Kamikaze in northeastern Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
which was open to all styles of karate. In 1964 Tsuruoka founded the National Karate Association of Canada (NKA) and served as its first president.[ In 1967 the first inter-university karate tournament was held between Ontario universities, with the University of Toronto team winning the championship.][ As Chito-ryu became better established in Canada, Tsuruoka became sought after as an official for international tournaments and demonstrations. On November 16, 1973 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the Pan-American Karate Union elected Masami Tsuruoka first Vice-President.]
Tsuruoka Karate-Do
In 1979, Masami Tsuruoka stepped down from his position as director of the Canadian Chito-kai, and with the help of his chief technical director, Ron Fagan, founded his own organization, the Tsuruoka Karate-do Federation. His former senior student, Shane Higashi, assumed leadership of the Canadian Chito-kai (Chito-ryu Karate Association). On Wednesday, May 27, 1998, Master Tsuruoka received the Order of Ontario
The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...
presented by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province bu ...
, the Honourable Hilary Weston
Hilary Mary Weston ( Frayne; born January 12, 1942) is an Irish–Canadian businesswoman and writer who served as the 26th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1997 to 2002. During her five-year tenure, Weston focused on issues related to wome ...
. On May 13, 2006, Tsuruoka received his 10th-Dan rank, awarded by the National Karate Association.[ On October 10, 2014, Tsuruoka died at the age of 85.
Tsuruoka Karate is named for it founder Masami Tsuruoka, 10th Dan. Its foundation is in Chito-Ryu and Shotokan and it blends in effective techniques from many martial arts.
]
See also
* Chito-ryu
* Karate
Further reading
*The Spirit of Karate-do, The Teachings of Masami Tsuruoka - Bowerbank Andrew - 1997 ()
Sources
* Masami Tsuruoka". Shito-ryu.org. 2005. http://www.shitoryu.org/bios/tsuruoka/tsuruoka.htm. Retrieved 2010-07-20.[Masami Tsuruoka - Shitoryu.org]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsuruoka, Masami
1929 births
2014 deaths
Canadian male karateka
Canadian sportspeople of Japanese descent
Japanese-Canadian internees
Martial arts school founders
Members of the Order of Ontario
Chitō-ryū practitioners
20th-century philanthropists