Sensei's Message

We’ve had an exciting and eventful start to summer in Illinois Shotokan Karate Clubs as many of our students prepared for and competed in the USANKF Nationals in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I’m very proud of our competitors and am very pleased with our results (147 medals) at the tournament. I believe our results reflect the hard work and effort that our students put forth in preparing for this event.

I’d like to give special congratulations to Sensei Brian Mertel and Jenna Weber who both placed first in their Senior Kumite divisions and will be representing the US Team at the Pan American Championships in Ecuador. I wish them the best of luck. A special thanks goes to Sensei Beth Noia and her sister Sara, who worked as the Staging Coordinators and helped produce one of the most efficient and smoothly run national tournaments to date. We also had some of our students and parents volunteer. The help was greatly appreciated.

As our summer session comes to an end I encourage our students to keep an eye on the fall dates, as most park districts are already accepting registration. I’d also like to remind the students that fall belt testing is quickly approaching. Keep in mind that you must be enrolled in the fall session in order to test and ranks green belts and above must have at least four classes (two sessions) in between exams in order to be eligible to test. If you are unsure if you are eligible please call our office at (847) 359-0666.

Best Wishes,

Sensei DiPasquale