By Margaret Maccoll
Ten years after taking up karate at 64 retired police detective Garry Maher is teaching other over 50s they too can take up the art to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.
The 74-year-old who is a Black Belt 3rd Dan teacher at the Sunshine Coast Martial Arts group Karate Budokan International said his involvement with the masters group had been one of the highlights of his karate journey.
He has helped people who nervously commenced their training with feelings that it was beyond them into becoming agile, alert, confident and motivated people with a number of his students progressing to their orange belt, three belts senior to their initial white belt in the past year.
“I can identify with such people because I nervously commenced karate at 64 years of age wondering what on earth I was doing in a karate school in the first place,” he said.
“But I hung in there, and with the assistance of the friendly and professional teaching staff, worked my way up through the belt ranks until I reached what I thought was an impossible dream – a 1st Dan Black Belt at the age of 68, later my 2nd Dan and eventually my 3rd Dan at 72 years of age.
Since then Garry has gone on to bigger things, winning a silver medal in the Queensland State Karate championships in Brisbane and later another silver medal in the KBI world championship competing with competitors half a century younger than him.
For more information, phone Garry at Karate Budokan International in Gibson Road, Noosaville, on 5455 5222.
