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JSKA PORTUGAL CHIEF INSTRUCTOR — VILAÇA PINTO

Sensei Vilaça Pinto started his Karate career in Lisbon, at the Budo Academy in 1966. Between 1969 and 1972 he had several periods of training with JKA senseis namely: Kanazawa, Miyazaki, Enoeda Tomita, Kato, etc..Aware at that time of the technical differences between Portugal and other countries in Europe, he traveled to Japan/JKA in 1972. Upon is arrival in Japan he was welcomed by teacher Mazatoshi Nakayama and accepted as a member of his Dojo Hoitsugan (nº A000001) where he trained and resided until 1976 becoming his disciple.

“Its very difficult to find a person like shihan Nakayama, much more difficult is to forget him”.

Apart from the daily training sessions in the Hoitsugan of Ebisu headed by the great master, sensei Vilaça Pinto trained daily also in the JKA-Honbu, initially in Suidobashi and after (1974) in Ebisu very near the Hoitsugan, additionally three times a week with sensei Kanazawa in his private Dojo in Yotsuya. The JKA-Honbu at that time was the model for Shotokan, just like a bees nest, full of the best instructors of Karate in Japan. Apart from the long training lessons headed by Shihan Nakayama, there would be present senseis like: Kanazawa, Yano, Soji, Abe, Hayakawa, Takahashi, Assai, Oishi, Isaka, Tanaka, Osaka, Yahara, Kawasoe, Sato and, the young ones, Kasuya and Mori. “Only the individuals that were there can testify to what the Dojo was and the day to day environment. We couldn’t even look at the person training next to us. Only in kumite we would know who attended the class with us”. The truth is that never in the history of Karate has any other school gathered so many instructors of such high caliber like the “old” JKA during the 70’s.

“The steely disciple starts even before entering the Dojo. The traditional British punctuality left much to be desired when comparing with the Japanese; no one would dare enter the Dojo after the initial greeting, and if for any reason someone was late, it would be preferable not coming in, not even climb the stairs. For that reason all students would arrive half an hour early, those minutes were extremely painful…. The highly ranked instructors would call the students for jyu-kumite, ritual repeated after the class; if a novice rushed to the bathhouse he would be called for a session of jyu-kumite…. It was very hard” From the beginning I asked myself what was the difference of methodology between the classes in the Honbu and the ones given by master Nakayama.

 

During this golden period, 65 countries were represented, 10 million members in total, the JKA was present in almost all of the countries of the world. Nevertheless, this enormous “ship” became large and heavy! No one would have foreseen that in a few years time it would fall apart. Even today, 22 years after the death of Master Nakayama (1987), many karatecas would ask themselves why the master did not nominate a successor, in the same way Funakoshi had done 30 years earlier by nominating him. The answer lies with the gods. “Personally I think that it was a decision taken deliberately after a lot of thought, based on the analysis of the situation at JKA in the last years of his life. I do not believe that a teacher like Nakayama would be caught unaware of his impending death, without thinking of the best solution for the future of Karate Shotokan created by his master and evolved by him. On the contrary I am convinced that the best solution in his view was to not nominate a successor. Let us, therefore, analyze the present situation as far as Karate goes in world terms…. Could it be possible for Karate Shotokan to be in a better position? Effectively, the highly practiced Karate Shotokan continues to be the most used model in the world, not only under a unique organization but many. All of them headed by the best senseis formed at the Nakayama School….

 

All of them JKA…. The paradigm! “This teaches us that the largest organizations are not necessarily the ones that better serve the interest of local bases (the students). On the contrary, in global organizations the interest of students comes second in relation to the interest of its directors whom the participants support financially”. The dismemberment of the original JKA in 1999 allowed the “old senseis” previously under the shelter of master Nakayama, to construct and lead their own organizations. JSKA, headed by shihan Abe Keigo is one of them. Facing this new reality, and Abe Keigo being the most loyal disciple of Mazatoshi Nakayama amongst other senseis, Vilaça Pinto found the model for his school in Portugal. This way would give continuity to the Karate professed by Funakoshi: Mazatoshi Nakayama…Abe Keigo…Vilaça Pinto. Facing this enormous responsibility, Vilaça Pinto decided to formalize his attachment to “mother-JSKA”, adopting for his organization the same monogram – JSKA-Portugal. JSKA-Portugal, apart from its recent constitution, it has the oldest Portuguese Karatecas, having in sensei Vilaça Pinto, 7º Dan, member of Shihankai JSKA one of the pioneers of Karate in Portugal.

The vast experienced acquired has kept him in good stead with the official tutorship, recommended for the position of National Director of Refereeing, National Technical and Master, position fulfilled until 1989.
He is presently 7º Dan Shotokan, member of JSKA Shihankai and National Karate Trainer level III (the highest national qualification of the federation). JSKA international trusted him with the organization of the 5º World Karate Championships, which will take place in Portugal, in the town of Portimão-Algarve, in October 2010.