JKA Northern California (JKA NorCal)

06/13/2026

Save the date! JKA NorCal is excited to announce that Sensei Yuko Hirayama (7th Dan, JKA HQ) will be returning to the San Francisco Bay Area on September 11–13th. We had an amazing turnout last year, and we’re so honored to learn from Sensei for the second year in a row. More details for the camp to come in the following weeks!

TENTATIVE DETAILS —
📍: Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California (Japantown, San Francisco)
🗓️: September 11-13th, 2026
🔗: Registration open soon!

05/22/2026

Congratulations to Julia Ip for her performance at the JKA Canadian Nationals in Montreal 🇨🇦🏆! We’re proud to share that she placed 5th in kata and 2nd in kumite. It’s always amazing to see how your consistent effort and training are reflected so well on competition day. Way to cap off a solid first half of the year!

04/20/2026

Calling all NorCal members! We’ll be hosting our all-dojo training on Friday, May 1st at 6-7pm followed by a casual potluck. This class will be open to all current and past students, regardless of age or skill level!

📍: JKA NorCal (San Bruno)
🗓️: 6pm, May 1st

If you’ve been lurking or busy these past few months, here’s your day to dip your toes back into training or to drop by and socialize with old friends! For active members, this is a great way to get to know other dojo members you might not run into throughout the week.

If you’re looking to bring anything to the potluck, we’ll post sign ups on our Slack page soon. Look forward to seeing everyone there!

04/17/2026

Located in the Bay Area and interested in trying out karate? We’re currently running a four-week adult beginner’s program beginning on May 11th!

📍: JKA NorCal (San Bruno, CA)
🗓️: Mondays & Thursdays, 6:30-7:30pm, 5/11-6/4
🔗: Register at https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=557815&preLoadClassID=21337113&utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQMMjU2MjgxMDQwNTU4AAGnQrui8Q2_DmGq7G9yEbk4Qpf0RDg9SHQa1g8TKcbC_n_KNJhmZnle1iw1cJ8_aem_0A_0IoG6ujUWF4iz96qnlA, or DM us!

Learn the basics, get yourself moving, and just have fun with this limited-time deal! Students attend eight, one hour-long classes specifically tailored for newcomers at only $125. If you’ve been thinking about martial arts for a while and been looking for your sign to start, this is the perfect opportunity! Instruction is adaptive and flexible to follow your pace.

Classes are open to people of all athletic backgrounds and abilities over the age of 15. Come in athletic wear or comfortable clothes you can move around in. Link to register in our bio, reserve your spot today!

04/08/2026

Team members from JKA NorCal were able to attend the 2026 North American Open in Las Vegas, NV this past weekend. Competitors from a variety of karate backgrounds traveled internationally to attend. The tournament offered many events including sanbon, ippon, and rotational kumite, giving us a chance to maximize the learning opportunities here.

It was great meeting up with the other JKAAF dojos to compete and enjoy Vegas together. Everyone did amazing overall, showing the strength of the organization! We’ll take the experiences home and come back next year even more prepared than before.

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Dojo Highlights
Julia - Sanbon Kumite (-60kg)🥉
Sammi - Sanbon Kumite (open)🥈, Shotokan Kata🥉
Men’s Rotational Kumite: Abdallah, Amir, Michael (JKA Maine)🥉
Women’s Rotational Kumite: Sammi, Julia, Kellan (LKA)🥈

12/15/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1CYdTNEKVQ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

12/12/2025

This year, JKA NorCal gave an excellent showing at the JKA/AF National Championships in New Orleans, LA!

Coming off a successful Panamerican Championship, our competitors dug deep and powered through to the last competition of the year. We’re super proud of the rapid growth everyone has demonstrated. We maximize these experiences by using them as learning opportunities to push even harder!

Special congratulations to Sammi, who secured first place in both the kata and kumite divisions. She was also recognized with this year’s Best Female Competitor award. Hopefully this is the first of many to come!

Additionally, our women’s kumite team was able to secure first place this year! Excitement is high and we’re riding the good energy into the new year. The competition team has built up a rhythm and we’re continuing to push each other every day. We look forward to showing everyone the fruits of our training in 2026!


📸: Mark Prudhomme
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Dojo Highlights:
Sammi - 🥇indiv. kata, 🥇indiv. kumite,🥇team kumite
Julia - top 8 indiv. kata, 🥇team kumite
Harry - 🥉indiv. kata, 🥉indiv. kumite, 🥉team kumite
Abdallah - 🥉team kumite
Amir - 🥉team kumite
Christina - 🥈indiv. kata (50+), 🥈indiv. kumite (40+), 🥇team kumite

12/10/2025

12/10/2025

Happy🎂Birthday Sensei Mikami 🎉

11/25/2025