Motobu Choki: One Tough Master Of Karate
There’s going to be a lot of opinions on who was the toughest Master of Karate, but Motobu Chōki certainly deserves consideration. He was one of the first instructors to teach Karate outside of Okinawa, and he is responsible for the fame and notoriety that resulted in the spread of Karate through Japan. Interestingly, this ‘George Washington’ of Karate is not a commonly known figure.
Motobu entered the world in Okinawa in 1870, and descended from the royal lineage. As the third son, he was not supposed to train in the martial arts, but that seemed to make him want to study all the more. He spent much time bashing makiwaras, lifting heavy stones, and training as he could.
Eventually, because he developed such a high degree of agility, people called him Motobu the Monkey. He also was looked on as a fierce, though untrained (brutal?) street fighter. Though he was held in low esteem for his brawling, instructors took him on as a student, probably because of his lineage.
His instructors read like a Who’s Who of early Okinawan Karate. Among the masters who taught him were Ankō Itosu, Sakuma Pechin, Sōkon Matsumura, Tokumine Pechin, and Kōsaku Matsumora. This would be like somebody who trained under Ed Parker, Morihei Uyeshiba, Bruce Lee, and Gichin Funakoshi.
Motobu traveled to Japan, where some Karate instructors were earning a living teaching the art to the Japanese. Motobu being a rough character, and not succeeding at business, was talked into signing up for a’Judo v Boxing’ match . He was 52 years old the night he entered that fighting event, and he was about to change Karate for all time.
His opponent is said to have been a strongman from Russia. Strong or not, Motobu is said to have used a single punch to put the fellow down and out. People were astounded at this incredible knock out, and newspapers gave the thing coverage, and here is where the story takes an odd twist.
The newspapers didn’t have a picture of Motobu, so they published the only image they did have, which was of a young fellow name of Gichin Funokoshi. That’s right, Motobu knocked the strongman out, but his fellow countryman, and competitor, Gichin Funokoshi, got the credit. Thus, Shotokan was spread around the world, and Motobu went home.
Motobu Chōki, brawler and roughneck, is responsible for the spread of Karate throughout the world. He was a karateka of tremendous punching power, and he founded the Motobu Ryu Karate system. People may have forgotten about him, but they shouldn’t, for he is definitely in the running for toughest Karate Master of all time.
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