January 1, 2024
To all of you, I wish you and your families a hopeful new year.
Last year, members of our Matsubayashi-ryu from Asia, North America, Europe, Oceania, and mainland Japan came to Okinawa from afar, and we were able to deepen our skills and friendship.
As a major event related to karate this year (2024), the second Okinawa Karate Junior and Youth World Championship will be held in August and will be hosted by the Okinawa Prefecture. The purpose of this tournament is to create a venue for karate enthusiasts from all over the world to gather in Okinawa the birthplace of karate, to deepen their exchanges, and to correctly preserve and inherit the techniques and spirit of Okinawa karate that have been systematized by the predecessors in Okinawa and passed down to this day. It is also intended to promote the future development of Okinawa traditional karate and Kobudo.
Well, this year marks the third anniversary of the establishment of the Shoshin Nagamine Memorial Monument. Last year’s unveiling ceremony was held with a small number of people due to restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, we are deeply grateful for your generous support, and we are pleased that we were able to establish a beautiful monument. In November, we will be holding a memorial festival to commemorate the establishment of the monument. We are looking forward to welcoming many of you to Okinawa and meeting you again.
I wish 2024 will be brisk and vibrant year。
Yoshitaka Taira
President WMKA
Hanshi 10th Dan
