White – Guy English began studying martial arts in 2003 in his hometown of Detroit. Almost 21 years later, he's still teaching martial arts in the basement of his home in White and competing in tournaments.
On Saturday, English competed in the Sioux Falls Open Martial Arts Tournament and placed third in the black belt weapons division. His annual tournament in Sioux Falls draws 280 competitors from South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota.
Tournament events included forms, point fighting, grappling, sport jiu-jitsu, and self-defense. English competed against 10 to 12 other fighters in the Weapon Form event. Form is performed in front of a judge who checks for control, balance, good foundation, and flow to the next movement.
“I’m old and a little bit damaged and fragile,” English said. “So I participate in these things and compete in different areas.” [forms] And it's been me for over 10 years now. … He had 10 to 12 people in my department, so it was tough. …It was great to have different styles and different weapons. ”
English, 46, used the rhino as a weapon on Saturday. He began martial arts at Southfield Martial Arts Institute in Detroit. It's the same institute where Hall of Fame grandmaster Willie Adams trained, making Adams one of the most prominent and respected martial artists of all time.
“I practiced karate for several years.” [as a teenager] And as the years went on, I realized that I regret dropping out of it because I was a brown belt and so close to testing for black belt. '' English said. “Long story short, I was depressed from my home life because I didn’t have the best home life.
“I came this far in my mid-20s, but the only thing I regret about quitting is not being able to graduate from college and not being able to complete my martial arts career to get my black belt. , I looked at about 10 different schools in the Detroit area, but when I walked into one particular school, I felt like I was at home. I have been training for 21 years.
After several years of training, English returned to college and earned a degree in electronics with a black belt in 2000. He was then scouted to move to South Dakota for his job in 2008 and remained with Southfield. After living in Brookings for several years, he became a martial arts teacher.
“My teacher gave me the OK to teach as a member of the organization, so I am officially teaching.” [in the Brookings area] Since 2010. I never had my own brick-and-mortar school. I have taught at several gyms.I taught it at [SDSU] I worked at a wellness center for a while, then a gym, and taught for a while. But I couldn't really build one, so a few years ago I told his wife that I was going to bring everything into the house, build a little dojo in the basement, and run classes there.” English said.
English's youngest student at White Karate Club is 7 years old, with some students in their 30s. He teaches a type of karate called Isshin-ryu, but also has training in other forms of martial arts.
“I continue to train in karate, which I have been doing for many years, called Isshin-ryu Karate, which is an Okinawan style of martial arts. [in South Dakota] I also received Taekwondo training. I earned a second degree black belt in it. I've been training Japanese Jiu-Jitsu on the side for a while. I recently started training with a gentleman who teaches Tan Su Daw and now I have an orange belt,” English said.
The training he has received over the past 21 years has not only helped his fighting skills, but also his mindset for life.
“I always tell people that through my martial arts training, I learned more about living life than I learned how to fight, because the fight is just within us. We all fight. We learn to win our own battles and we learn to find balance,” English said.
That's something he has tried to pass on to his students as well.
“I try to take everything in as much as I can. [Southfield] Because I want to pass on all the principles I have learned to my students. Learn how to act according to principles. If you're doing it physically, you're doing it mentally. And if you can achieve these things in one thing, you'll find that it permeates everything you do and that's how you live your life. …So, teaching people how to move and approach martial arts, rather than techniques, that's the biggest thing I've learned and tried to pass on. … Don’t focus on belts or ranks. They come with time.
English will host his first tournament on May 11 at Dewbrook Middle School. He is scheduled to compete in the Grand National Tournament in Detroit in June.
