Following the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, I've had a lot of questions from confused individuals about the nature of Karate. The general public has mostly had their exposure to Karate through the Cobra Kai/Karate Kid franchise and now through the competition displayed at the Olympics. This has generated some misconceptions about Karate students being either undisciplined violent brawlers or ineffective participants in a glorified game of tag in white pajamas.
So, is Karate a Martial Art or a Sport?
In a traditional sense, Karate is neither a Martial Art nor a Sport. It is purely a self-defense art. Martial Art implies war and fighting, which are both not a part of true Karate studies. Karate is about learning self-defense practices that are to be used in an unavoidable situation where the practitioner or loved ones are attacked. Preparing for war and fighting involves training with the intention of initiating and/or willingly participating in violence.
Oxford Dictionary:
mar·tial
adjective
of or appropriate to war; warlike.
Merriam Webster Dictionary:
mar·tial
adjective
of, relating to, or suited for war or a warrior
relating to an army or to military life
experienced in or inclined to war : warlike
In a modern sense, Karate can be classified as both a self-defense art and a sport. In fact, there are many dojo's that train only in techniques that are effective in tournaments. As has been witnessed in many combat related arts (BJJ, Taekwondo, Judo, etc), once there are competitions with structured rules of engagement, training methods in many clubs are adjusted towards a competitive focus. This is not a criticism of sport combat arts, but just an observation of the natural evolution that occurs when the sport side becomes a priority.
The vast majority of modern Karate clubs train a mix of traditional and sport related techniques. Traditional training tends to favour life long participation in the arts. Whereas sport training tends to favour the athletic pursuits of younger participants. Many younger students start with a sport focus and end up transitioning into a more traditional focus later in their studies.
At PoCo Karate, our primary focus is on the traditional studies of Karate, with a secondary focus on sport. Students will learn a solid traditional foundation in basic techniques, kata, and sparring. If they would like to challenge themselves in the fun, competitive environment of sport karate, they will be well supported by our experienced instructors.

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