Master Justin Warren has celebrated 30 years in martial arts by earning his sixth dan black belt in Taekwondo.
The 44-year-old life student of martial arts moved a step closer to his overall goal of becoming a grandmaster of Taekwondo (eighth dan) which will still take another 13 years, not that is phases him. Warren said having a physical goal to strive for is a driving force behind staying active and healthy.
“To make a goal of this type will have so many other benefits but looking after yourself is crucial and it’s no secret that exercise helps,” he said.
Warren’s main martial arts is Taekwondo but he also holds a black belt rank in judo, Japanese jujitsu and a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He has his eye on a weapon based art next.
He said martial arts have always been a passion and maintains that keeping an open mind to learning about self defence is crucial.
To achieve his new rank, Warren was graded by two grandmasters of Taekwondo over traditional patterns, a variety of 20 punch defences, various high level kicking combinations, self defence techniques and knife attack defences.
Next up for an examination of sport Taekwondo and kick boxing style sparring and finished with a five station board break which is a display of accuracy and power. Warren earned a mark of 95 per cent for the final round.
To complete the assessments, a 10 page essay on Taekwondo was sent to the Kukkiwon in Korea for grading.
Warren thanked a number of key supporters for helping him achieve the grade through their belief in his abilities.
Alongside his own gradings, Warren is currently the Master head instructor of Taekwondo Central and the Little Dragons program – a class for under eight’s class with a focus on escape techniques and skills more appropriate to their age.
The classes have proven their worth with two children escaping abduction attempts in 2004 using the skills they were taught at the classes.
For more information about Taekwondo Central and the classes on offer visit tkdcentral.com.
