is the founder and Kaicho (chairman) of World Seidō Karate Organization headquartered in New York City.

Early years

Tadashi Nakamura was born on February 22, 1942, in the town of

Maoka Kholmsk (russian: Холмск), known until 1946 as Maoka ( ja, 真岡), is a port town and the administrative center of Kholmsky District of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. It is located on the southwest coast of the Sakhalin Island, on coast of the gu ...

on the island of

Karafuto Karafuto Prefecture ( ja, 樺太庁, ''Karafuto-chō''; russian: Префектура Карафуто, Prefektura Karafuto), commonly known as South Sakhalin, was a prefecture of Japan located in Sakhalin from 1907 to 1949. Karafuto became t ...

. Nakamura trained in various martial arts including Goju-Ryu,

Kendo is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords (shinai) as well as protective armor (bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spread ...

, and

Kyokushin is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Ja ...

. In 1956 he started studying with

Mas Oyama , more commonly known as Mas Oyama, was a karate master who founded Kyokushin Karate, considered the first and most influential style of full contact karate. A Zainichi Korean, he spent most of his life living in Japan and acquired Japanese ci ...

(founder of the

style of karate) and he had reached the rank of

shodan SHODAN (Sentient Hyper-Optimized Data Access Network) is a fictional artificial intelligence and the main antagonist of the cyberpunk-horror themed video games ''System Shock'' and ''System Shock 2''. Character design SHODAN is an artificial in ...

(1st degree

black belt Black Belt may refer to: Martial arts * Black belt (martial arts), an indication of attainment of expertise in martial arts * ''Black Belt'' (magazine), a magazine covering martial arts news, technique, and notable individuals Places * Black B ...

) on May 6, 1962. When he was 19 years old (1961) he made his first tournament appearance, the All-Japan Student Open Karate Championship, where he was placed first. In 1962, he took part in a match against a

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

of the

Lumpinee Boxing Stadium Lumpinee Boxing Stadium ( th, สนามเวทีมวยลุมพินี) is a sporting arena in Bangkok, Thailand. The stadium is named after Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha. Opened more than a decade later than Rajadamnern ...

. The contest had been to determine which country had the 'best'

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

. It was around this point in his life that Nakamura started passing his knowledge and experience onto others. Firstly at Camp Zama (a U.S. military base near

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

) from 1961 to 1965. He also coached the karate team for the Toho Medical University for three years. He also served as chief instructor at the Kyokushin Karate Honbu in Tokyo while earning his seventh dan.

Kyokushin

On April 5, 1966, the head of

Karate,

Masutatsu Oyama , more commonly known as Mas Oyama, was a karate master who founded Kyokushin Karate, considered the first and most influential style of full contact karate. A Zainichi Korean, he spent most of his life living in Japan and acquired Japanese ci ...

, selected Nakamura to go to the US and spread the spirit of karate. Aged 24, he moved to New York City to begin teaching Kyokushin Karate. His first dojo was at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Over the next 10 years he served as the American head of Kyokushin Karate. In 1971, he established the North American Kyokushin Karate headquarters on 14th Street in Manhattan. As the Kyokushin style became more popular, Nakamura started to feel the quality of the instruction was slipping. He also began questioning the philosophy of his mentor

. In 1976, he respectfully withdrew from Kyokushin Karate, severed links with the Japanese Karate world and established his own style, Seidō juku.

Seido

Seido means 'Sincere Way' and aims to develop students not just physically but also mentally, helping create 'complete' and 'balanced' individuals committed to improving themselves and the communities they live in. Seido karate's three main principles are Love, Respect, and Obedience. Love for one's family and friends. Respect for your fellow karateka, your seniors, your parents and their knowledge and experience. Obedience (not subservience) to the laws and moral rules of life. Seido is headquartered in New York City, but has many branch dojos around the world. An important part of the Seido World Seido Karate Organization is the Seido Juku Benefit Foundation which performs many good works for charity, including the annual benefit tournament. Nakamura has received praise and recognition from city, state, national and international leaders for the good works of the benefit foundation.

Books and articles

Nakamura has authored several books and articles on Seido Karate, as well as related topics such as meditation, breathing, and teaching. Some of these include; * One Day, One Lifetime (1995) () * The Human Face of Karate (1989) () * Karate: Technique and Spirit (2001) () * Karate Kyohon (2001) ()

Notes

External links

World Seido Karate Organization
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakamura, Tadashi Japanese male karateka Martial arts school founders 1942 births Living people Kyokushin kaikan practitioners Karate coaches