In 2017 two Karatekas of our club have successfully passed a Dan exam. For Otto Lach it is already the 5th Dan, while Klaus-Dieter Kloss has achieved the 2nd Dan. Both are longtime active members of the club and also work as coaches. Bernd Sitzmann, as board member for public relations, has taken the success as an opportunity to conduct the following interview with both of them. On the one hand it is meant as information for the club members, on the other hand it is also directed to all interested parties of the karate sport.
On behalf of the Karate Club Langenselbold I congratulate you on passing the Dan exam. Learning Karate means to acquire techniques and skills step by step, which are then completed with an examination. Your first dan examination was a proud highlight, from then on you were so-called "black belts". How did you come to learn Karate?
O. Lach: Karl Vetter came to Langenselbold in 1969 as a trainee at the Weinbergschule. He had started karate training in Frankfurt and at that time he was the owner of the 1st Kyu (brown belt). He founded the Karate Club Langenselbold. At that time I was in one of the classes that Mr. Vetter taught as a trainee teacher. He was looking for interested people who wanted to participate in the karate training. I was curious. Karate was only taught in Germany since 1957. The Karate Club Langenselbold then became the Karate Verein Langenselbold e.V. in 1969. At present I am the longest active club member. How old were you then? I was 11 years old and started training in September 1969. With the entry into the German Karate Federation on 11.02.1971 I am also since this date as a club member.Karl Vetter kam 1969 als Referendar nach Langenselbold an die Weinbergschule. Er hatte in Frankfurt mit dem Karatetraining begonnen und war zu diesem Zeitpunkt Inhaber des 1. Kyu (Braungurt). Er gründete den Karate Club Langenselbold. Ich war damals in einer der Klassen, die Herr Vetter als Referendar unterrichtete. Er suchte Interessierte, die an dem Karatetraining teilnehmen wollten. Ich war neugierig. Karate wurde ja erst seit 1957 in Deutschland unterrichtet. Aus dem Karate Club Langenselbold wurde dann der Karate Verein Langenselbold e.V. 1969. Zurzeit bin ich das am längsten aktive Vereinsmitglied. Wie alt warst du da? Ich war 11 Jahre alt und habe im September 1969 mit dem Training begonnen. Mit dem Eintritt in den Deutschen Karate Bund zum 11.02.1971 werde ich auch seit diesem Datum als Vereinsmitglied geführt.
What about you?
K-D Kloss: My parents suggested I go to the local karate club. I went to the training once, I immediately enjoyed it and I stayed with it. That was 1976, I was fourteen years old at that time.
Did you do any sports before that?
K-D Kloss: I had played football for about a year and a half in the 30s and did some cycling.
O. Lach: I've never been to another sports club before. We used to play handball in the neighbourhood back then.
Have you ever stopped practising karate?
O. Lach: During my time in the Bundeswehr it was temporarily not possible for me to participate in karate training.
K-D Kloss: With me it was the vocational training, during which I could not be active. But after that I immediately started again.
After how many years did you get your first Dan - the "black belt"?
O. Lach: I took my first exam for the 9th Kyu (white belt) on 11.08.1971, at the then first chairman of the Hessian Karate Federation Bodo Hauck. The 1st Dan examination was on 31.07.1987 with Shihan Hideo Ochi in Trier. That was 16 years of regular training two to three times a week and the attendance of additional courses on weekends.
By now you have achieved your 5th Dan.
O. Lach: Yes, the examination for the 5th Dan was on 01.07.2017 in Obertshausen with Shihan Efthimios Karamitsos (national coach Kata in the German Karate Federation) and Hermann Schmidt.
That was thirty years of enduring training in which you prepared yourself four more times for Dan exams.
O. Lach: Yes, certain waiting times and conditions must be observed between the exams and the higher the Dan, the more intensive the preparation.
Klaus-Dieter, what about you?
K-D Kloss: I took my first Dan exam in 2012. Career and family kept me from it for a long time until I decided, "Now I'm gonna take my time and go for it!" Five years later I reached the second Dan this year.
You have prepared for the exam together. How long did this preparation phase last and what did it mean to prepare for this exam?
O. Lach: In spring 2015 the agreement for the preparation for the Dan exam was made by Elke Franz for the 1st Dan, Klaus-Dieter Kloss and Züher Yetim for the 2nd Dan. My decision to take the exam for the 5th Dan was made at the beginning of November 2016. The beginning of the intensive training was after the summer holidays 2015 under my direction as a trainer. We used the training sessions on Sundays and additionally free training times on Wednesday evenings. During the autumn holidays 2016, an additional training session was held daily in the morning from 10.00 am to 12.00 pm (small gasshuku) in addition to the normal evening training sessions for one week. On Mondays, we received the finishing touches at national coach Efthimios Karamitsos in Frankfurt. In total we also participated in 18 weekend training sessions. At the beginning of November 2016, Klaus-Dieter Kloss approached me during the joint training preparation and asked me to register for the Dan exam together with him. After consultation with national coach Efthimios Karamitsos and his agreement, we took the exam on July 1, 2017 as part of an anniversary course in Obertshausen.
That was about two years of preparation. What is the procedure for such an examination?
O. Lach: Depending on the level of the Dan grade to be tested, different levels of difficulty are to be tested. The test covers several areas. In the area of Kihon (primary school) 8 to 10 basic technique combinations are to be shown. In the block Kata (sham fight) one Free Kata - chosen by the examinee - and two compulsory Kata, which are given by the examiner, must be shown. Afterwards one or two sequences of the Free Kata must be shown as Bunkai (decomposition, dismantling, practicing single kata movements with partner(s)) [Source: Encyclopedia of Japanese technical terms in the Karate style Shotokan by Schlatt] with a partner. As the last part of the examination the Kumite (combat exercise) with a partner is to be demonstrated. The Kumite consists of two parts. The: Jiyu Ippon Kumite - free a step fight with five to six attacks and corresponding defensive movements with counter attack) and the Jiyu Kumite - free fight.
All this makes it clear that not everyone gets a black belt. Besides the skills in karate a lot of time, strength and endurance is required. What do you think are the most important qualities that have made you successful?
O. Lach: Self-discipline, pleasure in sports, endurance and stamina.
K-D Kloss: In addition the high concentration ability and the division of the forces.
You're both karate instructors too. How long have you been doing this?
O. Lach: I made my training as a professional trainer in 1986/1987 and since 10.02.1987 I have the professional trainer license. After completing my training as a karate teacher, I received my license as a Trainer B Breitensport on 09.11.2008. In 2006 I also trained as a sound karate trainer in school sports. Before my training as a specialist trainer, I had already worked for several years as a trainer in the Langenselbold Karate Club. That is already more than thirty years as a karate trainer.
Well done. Klaus-Dieter, it hasn't been that long with you.
K-D Kloss: No, I started kids' training about eight years ago. In May 2015, I obtained my license as a C-trainer for karate in popular sports.
What do you try to teach your students besides karate technique?
K-D Kloss: I coach the kids mostly. I want to teach them the fun of exercise. The promotion of body coordination is a concern of mine. Many children have deficits. Discipline is also an important element in karate.
O. Lach: That there is no first strike in karate. Polite manners. Karate starts with respect and ends with respect. Understanding of karate throughout life.
Otto, you're also an examiner. Are you very strict about that?
O. Lach: The examination regulations form the basis of an examination. These are divided into stages. Each level requires special focuses of training, so that a continuous development of the examinee is evident. The corresponding requirements must be visible to the candidate, otherwise he cannot move on to the next level of training and crown this by passing the examination. It has nothing to do with strictness of the examiner. It does not help the student to pass the exam if he has not yet reached the training level.
You're probably right. What are your future plans in karate?
O. Lach: A health-conscious training. Further development and refinement of the karate sport I train. To pass on my knowledge and experience in karate training.
K-D Kloss: I couldn't agree more.
I thank you and wish you further success and many more active years in the Karate Club Langenselbold.
