Ryan Sigward

I began training with CFTS when I was 6 years old, I started in Bushfield middle school in Milton Keynes. My instructor was and still is Sensei Kidby. I passed my black belt in September 2007. This was a brilliant day for me. It meant the world to me and my family, as I had worked so hard for it.

I have always trained under Sensei Kidby and also have helped him with his club in Bushfield middle school, where I started to train, on a Tuesday. I still try to train two times a week and go to all the CFTS courses. I still enjoy karate and I’m still keen about it as when I first started, in 2000.

I have competed in lots of CFTS competitions, and one other competition which was held by another association, since I started karate and I’ve always enjoyed the free-style events, but i also enjoy kata. My favourite kata is Sepai, I like this kata because it is very different to other katas and it has a lot of interesting bunkai behind the moves.

Karate has been a massive part of my life; it has made me more disciplined, more confident and a much better person in a whole. Karate has helped me to succeed in everything I do in life by making me more determined. I think karate can help us learn a lot of very important lessons in and out of the dojo. Karate and the people involved in karate, including Sensei Kidby have helped me through difficult times in my life, from little things like school; to big things like the deaths of my grandparents.

In the future, when I have qualified as an instructor, I would love to open my own club, and also keep expanding my knowledge, as I know that no matter what belt you are and no matter how good you are, you never stop learning new things in karate and in life, even at black belt.