WHO WE ARE
The World Traditional Karate-Do Federation (WTKF) is an international governing body of traditional karate which sets up technical standards through competitions/events, while advancing social impact through training programs.
Our Board of Directors
What Is Traditional Karate?
Traditional Karate-Do is a disciplined martial art rooted in budo, the Japanese “martial way” which emphasizes character development, self-control, and lifelong learning alongside physical training. Originating in Okinawa and refined in Japan by the early 20th century, traditional karate was developed for self-defense, resilience, and ethical conduct, not entertainment or sport alone.
Influenced by both Okinawan To-de and Chinese martial traditions, traditional karate integrates technique with philosophy, transforming combat skills into a way of life.
Shotokan, one of the most widely recognized branches of traditional karate, exemplifies this balance of technical precision and moral discipline. The WTKF preserves and advances this branch of traditional karate as a global practice that builds confidence, respect, responsibility, and leadership across cultures and generations.
Foundational Leaders of Traditional Karate
Sensei Hidetaka Nishiyama (1928–2008)
Sensei Hidetaka Nishiyama is recognized as one of the most influential leaders in the history of traditional karate and a foundational figure whose vision continues to guide the World Traditional Karate-do Federation (WTKF).
Born in Tokyo in 1928, Nishiyama began his martial training at an early age and later studied karate under Gichin Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan Karate. He continued his formal education at Takushoku University, becoming part of a generation entrusted with preserving and advancing karate as a lifelong martial discipline.
As a founding member and Technical Director of the Japan Karate Association (JKA), Nishiyama was responsible for the education, certification, and international placement of instructors worldwide. Through this work, he helped establish consistent technical standards and ensured the global transmission of traditional karate grounded in budo principles. Nishiyama later served as President of the International Traditional Karate Federation (ITKF) and as the inaugural President of the American Amateur Karate Federation. In these leadership roles, he championed a long-term vision of karate centered on discipline, ethical instruction, and personal development. His approach to governance and technical excellence continues to inspire the leadership philosophy of the WTKF and its Board of Directors.
A respected scholar and innovator, Nishiyama authored Karate: The Art of Empty-Hand Fighting, the first comprehensive karate text published internationally. He also introduced traditional competitive and demonstrative formats such as Fuku-go and En-bu, designed to reflect authentic martial values and technical realism.
For more than three decades, Sensei Nishiyama taught and mentored instructors, shaping generations of leaders committed to preserving traditional karate worldwide. His legacy endures through the institutions he helped build, the standards he established, and the enduring belief that karate is
not merely a sport, but a disciplined way of life.
Sensei Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957)
Sensei Gichin Funakoshi is widely recognized as the founder of modern Karate-Do and the individual most responsible for introducing Okinawan karate to mainland Japan. Born in Shuri, Okinawa, in 1868, he began his martial training under renowned Okinawan masters Anko Itosu and Anko Azato, whose teachings profoundly shaped his technical and philosophical outlook.
In the early 1920s, Funakoshi was invited to demonstrate karate in Japan, marking the beginning of its formal transmission beyond Okinawa. Through his teaching, writing, and personal example, he transformed karate from a regional fighting method into a disciplined martial art rooted in budo principles.
Funakoshi emphasized that karate was not merely a means of self-defense, but a lifelong path of character development, humility, and self-control. His philosophy is encapsulated in the Twenty Precepts of Karate (Nijū Kun), which continue to guide practitioners around the world.
As the founder of Shotokan Karate, Funakoshi laid the technical and ethical foundations upon which modern traditional karate is built. His teachings stressed simplicity, correctness of form, and the unity of mind and body.
Sensei Gichin Funakoshi passed away in 1957, leaving behind a legacy that endures wherever karate is practiced as a true martial way.
