The senior instructor at the South Notts SKC, Rob took up karate in 1979 at the age of 14yrs. He entered his first competition the following year winning the central region junior kumite event as a purple belt and was awarded his black belt three years’ later in 1983. Shortly afterwards he was selected for the central region kumite squad coached by Sensei Frank Brennan 8th dan and competed for the region for many years. A highlight was being selected for a representative kumite team who fought the Belgian national team at their annual championships in Gent, Belgium. During the 1980s Rob was also a member of the successful Trent SKC kumite team and along with his team mates won numerous tournaments.
In 1987 at the age of 22yrs Rob won the senior men’s kumite event at the national students’ championship and took 3rd place in the kata. The following year in 1988 he spent a month training at the headquarters of the Japan Karate Association in Tokyo, Japan. On his return from Japan he was runner-up in the central region senior men’s kumite where he fought the 1991 WSKA world kumite champion in the final. In 1996 he placed 2nd in the London shotokan open men’s kumite and in 1999 he was 3rd in the central region men’s kumite. He retired from competitive karate in 2000 at the age of 35.
Since this time he has devoted himself to continuing to develop his own standard of karate and that of his students. He is a qualified KUGB instructor and assessor and regularly trains on advanced courses in order to maintain a high standard of tuition at the club. He is enormously proud of the achievements of his club members many of whom have enjoyed success in competitions, achieved high dan grades, and been selected for regional and national squads.
In 2017 Rob became central region secretary since which time he has been an active member of the KUGB national executive committee. In 2021 he became vice chair of the organisation, received recognition for over 40 years’ longstanding membership and achieved 6th dan.
