“He Thinks Outside The Box Of Tradition”

Vince Morris 1948 –

“He Thinks Outside The Box Of Tradition”

UK’s Vince Morris' martial arts background is as solid as you can get. A former Judoka, & long-time student of Shiro Asano 8th Dan, chief instructor of the Shotokan Karate International European Fed- eration (SKIEF). He was a constant member of the Honbu British & European Championship- winning ‘A’ team and the SKIEF European squad in both Kumite and Kata. He also represented Gt. Britain internationally as a member of the British Universities Squad.

He developed, along with other notables from this stable, a formidable reputation for spirited fighting, but at the same time he was also active on the political front, representing first the SKIEF, then eventually helping to establish the then governing body for all English Karate, (EKF) which in turn led to his appointment as the Chairman of the UK Government established Martial Arts Commission, overseeing all Martial Arts in England.

He is currently also chairman & CEO of I.S.O.K. (The association of Okinawa and Japanese Karate) and has been awarded the title of Kyoshi (‘Master Teacher’).

At Nottingham University, Vince entered the English Dept as an undergraduate, gained an honors degree in English, then stayed to pursue a PhD & also briefly teach Anglo Saxon in the Dept. During this period he led the University Dojo to win the British Universities Championships.

At the JKA World Championships in Dubai Vince was selected as the British team coach.

For many years Vince had been interested in researching the origins of modern techniques and in the applications of the Kata. In his first book, ‘The Karate-Do Manual’ (‘The Illustrated Guide to Karate in the USA’) published in 1979, we first see the use of the phrase Kyusho (Vital Point tech- niques) which signified a shift of focus away from the relatively ‘new’ sports oriented style of karate exemplified by Shotokan, towards a deeper study of the original concepts and practical effectiveness of traditional karate. He began to research deeply into the origins and bunkai of the Kata, together with the use of the vital points to enhance effectiveness, and became renowned as a pioneer in dis- seminating the principles and techniques of effective defensive waza.

Developing his connections with Military and Law Enforcement training he continued to research and refine his teaching, the emphasis equally divided between the promotion of the health-giving and character-building sporting side and that area devoted to developing the pragmatic and reliable con- trol and protection techniques for which his Law Enforcement Training is well known.

He created the “Law Enforcement Training Services Int.” to provide training resources to Police Officers and others. After many years, the effectiveness of the techniques were so apparent that in one European country a police force has revised its Officer Training Manual to incorporate them.

Kissaki-Kai Karate-Do, was founded by Vince Morris, now 8th Dan at the behest of senior ka- rate black belts who had become disillusioned with what the "traditional" karate schools had to offer in terms of "real" fighting techniques.