Black belts for Masterton judo pioneers

ANNIVERSARY: Sensei and senior, junior and cadet judoka at the fifth anniversary celebrations of the Masterton Judo & Ju Jitsu Academy on Saturday. Photo/Nathan Crombie

A PAIR of martial artists who were instrumental in founding the first judo club in Masterton almost 60 years ago have been awarded black belts -- one posthumously -- to help mark the fifth anniversary of the Masterton Judo & Ju Jitsu Academy.

Academy founder and head instructor Simon Ogden said Clive Thorne, who died on Saturday after a brief illness, had co-founded the Ichiban Judo Club with his brother Colin Thorne and Kelvin Henson at a store-room at Hood Aerodrome in 1958.

NUMBER ONE: Ichiban Judo Club co-founders, the late Clive Thorne (right) and Kelvin Henson, at the initial home of the club, a store room at Hood Aerodrome in 1958. PHOTO/FILE

In 1959 Masterton man John Haigh started training in judo at Ichiban, after a shift to the Masterton Young Citizens Club, which had a history of Ju Jitsu instruction from 1955 by a former British army close combat instructor John Woods.

In 1960 Joseph "Bully" Kawana started training and in 1962 the YCC Judo club had its first students grade to brown belt -- Clive Thorne and John Haigh -- under Sensei Pat Toner from Wellington.

Ogden said Thorne had also opened a new judo club at the Douglas Villa sports complex at Solway Showgrounds in 1966 and the Masterton YCC Judo club continued under the late Bob Forrester, Haigh and Kawana.

The clubs merged in 1970 and a year later Thorne retired from the sport. Haigh retired from judo a year later again, Ogden said.

SHODAN: John Haigh (left) of the defunct Ichiban Judo Club, is awarded shodan by his original instructor Pat Toner, 7th dan, president of the Wellington Judo & Ju Jitsu Academy. Photo/Nathan Crombie

Wellington instructor Cameron Clarke, nidan, led a judo course at the academy dojo in Queen St on Saturday to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the founding of the organisation, and Toner also presented a black belt to Haigh.

Ogden was to lay a black belt on the coffin of Clive Thorne at a funeral service for the pioneering Masterton judoka and pilot that was to be held in the town today.

"I know that Clive felt some regret in not getting around to doing his shodan, and I assume John felt a little the same," he said.

"So it was with great pleasure the academy invited their first black belt grading instructor to award them both their black belts in judo."