Mahikeng Campus

Karate has grown in popularity in Africa, particularly in South Africa and Ghana. Karate is a type of martial art that developed in Japan, particularly in the Ryukyu Islands, which is now known as Okinawa. Karate made its debut as an Olympic sport at the Tokyo Olympics. All martial arts teach principles and lessons that extend beyond the sports themselves. Karate teaches discipline, respect, confidence, focus and, most importantly, leadership. At the Mahikeng Campus of the North-West University (NWU), karate is based at the Great Hall, which is the multipurpose venue for a number of activities.

Our karate team has done exceptionally well in recent years.

 1. 2017 – USSA champions

 2. 2018 – Produced international karateka – Kobe, Japan

 3. 2018 – Best individual sports code

Potchefstroom Campus

Discipline, camaraderie, enjoyment and commitment – these are the four pillars on which the karate team of the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University (NWU) is built. Karate is most commonly known as an individual sport, but at the NWU Potchefstroom it is a team sport. Teams consist of traditional karateka, sport karateka and most definitely beginner karateka with a like-minded love and enjoyment of the sport. We practise together and we socialise together, we help each other and support each another as we grow as a TEAM.

The karate team is coached by Sensei Johan van Tonder, a sixth dan, who has led the team to victory at USSA competitions for the past 20 years. He is an experienced coach and has a way of bringing out the best in all the team members. Sensei Johan's main karate style is KWF Shotokan karate (traditional), but the team participates in semi-contact all styles karate and KSA competitions, which involve more of a sport karate.

The NWU Potchefstroom karate team welcomes anyone who wants to try something different. Karate is not something you can learn overnight, but as long as you enjoy what you are doing it is definitely worth doing.