Instructor Profile

Sensei Tony Aidoo 4th Dan

Chief Instructor and founder of Ashi SKC, Tony "kobby" Aidoo Sensei, has been a shotokan karateka for 12years, taking his first grading exam under Sensei Yoshinobu Ohta, now chief instructor of JKAE, in 1992. To most of his close friends and people who know him, football is the sport most associate him with as most injuries he has received are the doing of football!

Before taking up shotokan, Tony practised Tae-kwon-do from age 16yrs in his native Ghana. It was by a bizarre situation that he decided to take up Shotokan. As he says: " I took some time off my TKD training to concentrate on studying for exams i was about to take at the time. A couple of my friends were already shotokan karatekas; 3rd kyu (brown belts) to be precise. They invited me to go along to one of their training sessions. OK I said! Before i could shout "kiai" they were performing a 'line-training session on me; including my so-called friends! After a few "gyaku-zuki and "ushiro-geris and a quite uncontrolled mae-geri to my nether region; I said; thats it! Thanks and good bye and literally walked out of the class!! Anyway, although i was properly bruised and aching all over, I asked to go again and as the saying goes, the rest is history".

Aidoo Sensei graded shodan(first level black belt) in Dec 1995, Nidan (2nd level) in sept 1998 and sandan (3rd level) in May 2002; all under the late Sensei Keinosuke Enoeda 9th Dan JKA (Sadly passed away in March 2003).

Sensei Aidoo has also been involved in numerous competitions; local,regional and national championships; winning trophies and medals along the way. He was also in the Karate Union Of Great Britain (KUGB) England squad." Training regularly and always giving 100% when in the dojo is the only way to be a serious karateka. One cannot legislate for injuries so as long as I am injury -free, I will always give my best."

Aidoo Sensei trains regularly at the Wanstead Club under the guidance of his Sensei, Rod Butler; 4th Dan JKA; who has been his sensei since 1992 when he (Aidoo sensei) was a novice white belt! Sensei Butler has almost 28yrs of karate experience so his knowledge of this form of martial art is second to none.

'Staying injury-free has always been my problem! But will always give my maximum effort in the dojo so as to pass on the valuable knowledge I gather whilst training, to my students when I teach'