Karate: A way of living
Karate champion in the making, Stephen Haythornthwaite. (Photograph Yvonne Amukwaya)
Haythornthwaite has been around for the last nine years since starting his karate lessons at the tender age of 10 and has since grown into a personal karate trainer.
“When I first started karate, I was not very keen on any sporting activity. I was pushed into the sport but after sometime, I really grew into it and have been involved with karate thoughout my whole schooling years. It’s my life and it’s my every day routine.”
With his black belt in karate, Haythornthwaite decided to become a personal trainer for those that do not like big groups.
“I have a couple of people under my wings that come in on a day-to-day-basis as well as those that only train on a weekly basis ,” said Haythornthwaite a proud silver medalist at the Goju Ryu Okinawan Karate World Championships held in Stellenbosch South Africa, in 2010.
Haythornthwaite recently completed his examinations in Sports Science at the American Council in the hope to gain a professional qualification as a personal trainer. He is a full time fitness employee at the YAM gym facility in Avis. He also gives bootcamp classes at Ramblers on a daily basis.
“Almot everything I do is sport related, and for me it has become a way of life. It’s something I will not stop and to top it off I also have a fitness program at the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation where I demonstrate ways on becoming fit as well as self defence lessons in the mornings.”
He is also currently under going training at the YAM gym facility as a sports therapist.
Although karate is a well established sport, Haythornthwaite hopes that it will receive more recognistion especially from government as karate has had numerous successes.
Every year Karate Namibia compete against South Africa and internal competitions are also held in the country, and this weekend, the NAKU Championships will take place in the capital although Haythornthwaite will not be taking part due to other commitments.
