22/06/2026
Bath Karate welcomed Sensei Vicky Phillips 6th Dan to the club on Thursday night
The evening’s session was well-balanced, progressing through kihon, kumite, and kata. Sensei Phillips opened with focused drills on correct stances, body movement, speed, timing, and kime – fundamentals that she reinforced throughout the evening.
The kumite and pair work was built around three attacks: mae geri followed by gyaku zuki, ushiro geri, and oi zuki. Vicky emphasised leaving the block to the last moment, then delivering counters with proper stances and correct distance always making contact. Students moved on to work in groups of four, defending against each attack in sequence at speed, with the final counter involving takedowns onto our unforgiving floor (but, hey – we don’t need mats!). The technical demands were high, requiring precise stance work and distance control – directly linking to the kihon principles drilled earlier.
The session concluded with kata practice focusing on Jion and Sochin, where the fundamental principles of stance, alignment, and body movement from kihon were evident in every technique. To finish, Sensei Phillips kindly gave a demonstration of Sochin, just to show us how it can be performed at the highest level.
