AN EXTRAORDINARY LOCAL HISTORY
MORE THAN
FOUR DECADES.
From a university karate club in 1981 to national and international martial arts achievements.
FOUNDER & CHIEF INSTRUCTOR
01 / THE FOUNDER
TERRY
HILL.
A lifetime in the art. A legacy built in Hamilton.
Terry founded the Terry P Hill Martial Arts Association in 1981. His career has spanned Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate, kickboxing, wrestling, boxing, Sanda and officiating, with his expertise shaping San Bu Kai for generations.
In 1991, Terry won the first IOGKF World Heavyweight Full Contact Karate Championship title in Okinawa, Japan. San Bu Kai's original website also describes his roles as a UFC referee and judge, national coach and international Sanda judge.
*Ranks, appointments and achievements are reproduced from the dojo's own published history. Current titles may require confirmation.
02 / OUR HISTORY
THE STORY
IN FOUR ACTS.
Four milestones that shaped the martial arts association behind San Bu Kai.
THE BEGINNING
Terry Hill forms the association at Hamilton Teachers College Gymnasium on the University of Waikato campus. It begins as an Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate dojo.
KICKBOXING ARRIVES
Kickboxing joins the syllabus, laying the foundation for decades of full-contact training and champions.
WORLD CHAMPION
Terry wins the first IOGKF World Heavyweight Full Contact Karate Championship title in Okinawa. Self-defence also becomes part of the association's programme.
SANDA EXPANSION
Wu Shu / Sanda training is introduced. San Bu Kai competitors excel at the inaugural New Zealand Sanda championships.
03 / THE RESULTS
A HISTORY
OF ACHIEVEMENT.
Their published archive reveals a training environment that has contributed to martial arts far beyond Hamilton.
THE COMPETITORS / SAN BU KAI ARCHIVE100+ BLACK BELTS
The original San Bu Kai website reports more than 100 students attaining black belt grades over a 30-plus-year period.
50+ NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
Its archive describes more than 50 former and current national champions in kata, point fighting and full-contact disciplines.
THE 1999 SANDA TEAM
After success at New Zealand Sanda championships, San Bu Kai fighters represented New Zealand at the 1999 World Wu Shu Championships in Hong Kong.
04 / THE FOUNDATIONS
FROM
OKINAWA
TO HAMILTON.
Goju Ryu means hard and soft. Its roots are found in Okinawan martial arts.
San Bu Kai's detailed history traces the tradition through Kanryo Higashionna, Chojun Miyagi, Eichi Miyazato, Morio Higaonna, John Jarvis, Dennis May and Ken Roberts, Terry Hill's teacher.
Rather than reduce that lineage to a slogan, the original site preserves a substantial explanation of the style, its evolution and its place in New Zealand.
READ THE ORIGINAL LINEAGE ↗
THE TRADITION CONTINUES05 / EXPERIENCE BEYOND THE DOJO
COACHES.
OFFICIALS.
MENTORS.
Through Global Fighting Networks and wider combat sport bodies, Terry Hill and his network have also contributed to competition as referees, judges, coaches and officials.
SPEAK TO THE DOJO ↗