Kyokushin KenbukaiBerlin

Instructors

Senpai James

Senpai James

Senpai James has trained in the martial arts for over three decades, across four countries and several traditional styles. That long road — through Shotokan, Wado Ryu, Goju Ryu and Muay Thai — is what drew him to Kenbukai Kyokushin, a system that brings the hard and the soft together in one practice.

He first tried Shotokan at school in the 1980s, then began training seriously in 1993 at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, studying Shotokan, and earned his 1st dan in 1997. He also took up Muay Thai, and broadened his foundations with Higashi Kai Wado Ryu in Swindon and Daigaku Kai Goju Ryu at Bristol University.

In 2000 he moved to Munich, training Shotokan at SV 1880 from 2000 to 2009 and grading to 2nd dan in 2005. A later chapter in Prague added Goju Ryu alongside Muay Thai. Since 2021 he has trained in Kenbukai Kyokushin here in Berlin — earning his 2nd dan — where all those threads finally come together.

At a glance

Senpai Miguel

Senpai Miguel

Senpai Miguel found karate early and has never looked back. Born in 2003, he took up the art at the age of ten — inspired by a trip to Vietnam — and has trained steadily ever since, growing up through the dojo into an instructor.

His first style was Ashihara Karate, the circular, footwork-driven system that gave him a strong grounding in movement and angles. In the late 2010s he switched to Kyokushin Kenbukai, drawn to its full-contact spirit and technical depth, and has trained in it without interruption since. Since 2025 he has added Muay Thai to sharpen his clinch, knees and elbows.

At a glance