Date: August 9, 2019
Place: Rethusitswe Primary School, Phalaborwa, Limpopo Province, South Africa
Organizers/Host: WKO Branch Chief Sydeck Ngwako Monyela and Sempai Frans Seabi
On August 9, Limpopo Province WKO Shinkyokushinkai spent the day at Phalaborwa to celebrate the National Women’s Day public holiday at a fun walk/run event organised by The Phalaborwa Road Runners in partnership with Palabora Copper Mining (PMC). This day commemorates August 9, 1956 when over 20,000 South African women of all races and ages participated in a national march towards the Union Buildings in Pretoria petitioned against pass laws (“pass laws” were legislation that required African persons to carry a document on them to ‘prove’ that they were allowed to enter a ‘white only area’ during the Apartheid regime. The laws proposed even further restrictions on the movements of women).
In addition to the fun walk/run, WKO Phalaborwa hosted a special karate training as part of the Women’s Day celebration activities. The event was well attended by the community of BaPhalaborwa and over 50 Shinkyokushinkai karate students. It was a fun filled day and everyone was happy to see karatekas “painting the town white” in their white karate suits. During the special training, Phalaborwa team was joint by the teams from The University of Limpopo, Mokopane and Tzaneen area/region. Sensei Medupi Lechelele (3rd dan) conducted the training with Sempai Elvis Shiluvane. It was a tough training day and a new exciting experience for the students to have the whole day training sessions under Sensei Lechelele’s guidance. The students learned a lot from the instructors including kumite practice in line with the preparations for the upcoming tournament, The 4th Limpopo Shinkyokushinkai Karate Championships on September 7, 2019 in Mokopane Town. The students were encouraged to continue training hard in preparation for the September tournament and to become champions and dominate other provinces and organizations that will be participating in the event.
The host, Sempai Monyela and Phalaborwa Shinkyokushinkai expressed their gratitude to all participants and parents who made the effort to attend the event and support their children. Sensei Lechelele also expressed his words of gratitude for the invitation by Phalaborwa WKO Shinkyokushinkai to celebrate the National Women’s Day with them teaching karate.
Kind regards;
Sensei Andronica Shonhiwa (nee Rakgantso)
Assistant to President Isaac Mashinini; WKO South Africa/Africa Region.
On Behalf of Limpopo Province WKO Shinkyokushinkai
