​Mr. Technique

Mr. Technique 

Teruo Chinen

We have nicknamed Sensei Chinen, 'Mr. Technique'.

When you watch Sensei Teruo Chinen perform the art that he has help propagate world wide Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate Do, you can not help but say to yourself ,"how can anyone do a kata so exceptionally perfect?"

He began his training as a young boy in the garden dojo with the founder of Goju Ryu Karate, Chojun Miyagi this was in the very early 1950’s.  Although he was very young at the time, he still remembers fondly his encounters with the master.

After training with Miyazato Sensei after the Master's passing in 1953, he continued his training until he moved to Tokyo to help his Sempai Morio Higaonna. The training during this time was exceptional according to Master Chinen.

He talked about the first time he ever seen Jiu Kumite and how it was Peter Urban fighting in a tournament in 1957 in Tokyo. He spoke of how impressed he and Higaonna Sensei were with the  Kumite. They then went back to the YoYogi Dojo and began doing free style fighting with each other and their students. Kumite like this was never done and still is not done in Okinawa today in most dojos. But Chinen Sensei is now a believer in its value and benefit to the students.

Sensei talked a lot about eating and nutrition while we interviewed him and how although he does eat a great deal of fish his diet is a great deal of fruit and vegetable. He said he thinks that this diet mixture is why Okinawan’s have one of the longest life spans of any group in the world.

His unique brand of Goju emphasizes conditioning and he is the model of a Sensei in good shape. His exercises are totally unique bordering on gymnastics as he does push ups in unique ways as well as he does sit ups while gripping a tree with his legs. See the photo.

He then was asked to visit Spokane Washington and once they seen him and what a technican they wouldn’t let him go and he still makes Spokane his home today.

Master Chinen today travels the world teaching from Russia to Peru, Chili, USA, and Canada. On the road so much his air miles are enough to snap a makiwara in half we are sure.

Not only is he a technician's technician, he is gentlemen’s gentleman.  He has a unique gift to be one of the most personable people this writer has ever met. His soft spoken demure  coupled with smile- possibly one his most valuable weapons until you see him on the dojo then you realized that this man who is in impeccable condition is one of the best performers of Okinawan Goju in the world today.

When he teaches a technique he is able to divulge the inner parts of the forms second to none. His attention to details is ever so obvious when he puts it all together to do his form. The only way to describe it is that it is poetry in motion.

Rising Sun Productions was lucky to be able to add his name to our roster of world class masters of the martial arts and we are proud to be able to offer to you his DVD series called the Inside secrets of Okinawan Goju. He teaches all the basics and as well the bunkai of each of the katas as well as the forms themselves. He also teaches self defense techniques and kumite for Okinawan Goju.