Shotokan Karate of America (SKA) maintains a high level of non-commercialism and is devoted to teaching karate on its highest levels, as a martial art and a way of life.
SKA was founded and is still led by Tsutomu Ohshima, one of Master Funakoshi’s last direct pupils.
In 1955 Mr. Ohshima came to the United States. Despite the secluded nature of Mr. Ohshima’s early US practices, knowledge of his teachings quickly spread and he became the first person to teach karate to the US public.
Gichin Funakoshi is widely considered the primary “father” of modern karate due to his efforts to introduce the Okinawan art to mainland Japan, from where it spread to the rest of the world.
Tsutomu Ohshima is one of Master Funakoshi’s last direct pupils. He is the founder and Shihan (Chief Instructor) of Shotokan Karate of America (SKA), and is also recognized as chief instructor of many other international Shotokan organizations.
by Tom Sulak
(originally presented in Black Belt magazine in July 1975)
Tsutomu Ohshima, karate practitioner, exponent of humility and quiet spoken advocate of spiritual excellence, is human enough to make mistakes-at least one, anyway.