The Burundi Karate Federation inaugurated on Tuesday June 29 a Karate room in Bujumbura. This ceremony saw the participation of the Japanese Ambassador to Burundi and some Burundian personalities.
“We want this hall to become a training and development center for karate in Burundi and in the region,” said Sensei Christophe Nkurunziza dit Kimé, the president of Febuka (Burundian Karate Federation).
According to him, this dojo came when the Febuka did not have any other room. “During the preparations for the regional competitions, we used the judo room. You can hear that there are days when it was difficult to train, ”he insisted.
Black belt Sifa Alice Shimwe, who coaches Kanyosha’s Nihon Nukite karate team, hisses in relief. “I look forward to this room. Due to the lack of room, our activities often experienced disruptions. Sometimes we ran out of room, sometimes we used the Judo room ”. Same story with other karatekas questioned.
This room was built in the so-called ” Miroir ” district in the Buterere area on an area of 200 m2. The constructions were financed by Japan. This dojo is near the Don Bosco city of Buterere.
In a press release that he held, Mr. Masahiro Imai, the Japanese ambassador to Burundi underlines that the value of this construction is 90,222 USD. That is to say about 176 million BIF.
He calls on Burundian karatekas to learn martial arts while not forgetting their philosophical essence. He finally appreciated the deepening of Japanese-Burundian relations through sport.
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