One hundred and twenty-five Karate-ka from the Bishops Stortford based Shotokan Karate Ryu met at the Mountfitchet Romeera Leisure Centre in Stansted Mountfitchet on 11th June 2023 to partake in the quarterly Kyu (coloured belt) grading.

The Grading was overseen by Sensei Michael Ring (7th Dan) and Sensei Donna Ring (5th Dan) who have over 45 years combined experience in teaching traditional Shotokan Karate.

The Kyu Grading commenced at 9am and concluded at 2pm following a rigorous assessment of Kihon (basics), Kata (formal exercises) and Kumite (Sparring drills) for their new grades achieving a 93% pass rate. The first group of the day was the Tiger Tots, the youngest members of the club aged between 4-6 years of age. The Tiger Tots programme was developed by Sensei Donna in 2004, and is soon to enter its 20th successful year. A number of students also attended to undertake a mock grading to prepare for their black belt examination in October. Sensei Michael commented: “This grading was a great demonstration of the dedication and hard work SKR students put into their training. I was impressed by the level of Karate on display and look forward to seeing how the students continue to improve as they continue on their Karate journey.”