Kancho Robert Sullivan founded GKR Karate in 1984 and is still the Chief Instructor to this day.

He holds the rank of 8th Dan Black Belt in GKR Karate International and also holds an honorary rank of 9th Dan Black Belt by Martial Arts Australia and the International Martial Arts Coaching Council. This grading was awarded by 6 masters within the aforementioned associations.

With more than 60 years of karate experience, Kancho Robert Sullivan now travels the world conducting seminars to share his knowledge and wisdom with GKR’s students.

He also holds regular training camps for GKR’s senior-most instructors to help maintain GKR’s high-level of karate instruction.

Additionally, Robert also helps students from Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom connect with karate masters in Okinawa, the birthplace of karate. Hiring out the prestigious Okinawa Karate Kaikan, a complex dedicated to karate, which houses an enormous dojo space and karate museum. These week-long trips are organised every 2 years and have up to 200 GKR students attend. During this week, many Okinawa karate masters come to teach and share their knowledge, methodologies and ideologies.

HISTORY

Born in 1947, Robert spent most of his early life growing up in Gosford, New South Wales. At the age of 17, his fascination for karate led him to begin training in the Japanese style of Goju-Kai. Beyond his Goju-Kai training, he also spent considerable time dedicated to training in Keishinkan (Shotokan).

He travelled multiple times to Japan to train and even had a karate master, Takahara sensei move into his home in Australia to train him personally.

Kancho also spent time training in Malaysia training and moved to the USA where he not only continued his training and teaching under some of the most prominent instructors there.

After 20 years of dedicated training, Kancho started his own club (which would become GKR Karate) in Adelaide, 1984. His original aim was to build a small karate club, but he soon realised that teaching karate was something that would become his life-long vocation.

Kancho has written two books – ‘Karate For Everyone’ a guide illustrating GKR karate techniques and karate philosophies as taught in Japan, and ‘Living My Dream’, an autobiography which provides a fantastic insight into Kancho’s remarkable life. Kancho’s books can be found here in Australia.

Kancho can be contacted at rsullivan@gkrkarate.com or via the contact form below.