Skip to content.

The national charity and leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity

Menu. Open and close this menu with the ENTER key.

Disability Karate Federation kick starts new project

The Disability Karate Federation are offering the first 3 months of karate classes for only £15 at Stoke Mandeville Stadium from November. Their KickStart 100 Project has a syllabus especially adapted for people with learning difficulties and another for wheelchair users which replaces kicks with adapted techniques and lead each athlete towards the coveted Black Belt.

Studies into the effects of karate with disabled people indicate that it improves posture and ambulatory condition, confidence, self-esteem and increases muscle strength. Last year’s research by Imperial College showed significant changes in the white matter of the brain in karate practitioners which has implications for the understanding of the role of white matter connectivity in motor coordination and how brain changes may be related to the stage of development in which learning begins.

The lively and fun classes will be taught by Ray Sweeney 5th Dan and the organisation will be providing each athlete with a free karate suit, free belt, free licence, free insurance and the first 3 months training for only £15.

Ray said:

”Karate is a lot more than just kicking and punching; karate is about the development of the person as a whole. We have athletes successfully learning karate with all different forms of disability including SLD, PMLD, compound and complex disabilities, CP, missing limb, Visual impairment, hearing impairment, Down’s, dwarfism and wheelchair users.  We want to encourage more people with disabilities to start karate and become black belts and eventually learn to become instructors too”.

The classes at Stoke Mandeville in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire are on Thursdays at 5pm. They will give disabled people unequalled access to a sport which increases physical and mental dexterity as well as emotional well-being and an improvement in quality of life.

For more information, please contact Ray through email or mobile 07446503082