Kaizen Judo Kwai

The present Kaizen Judo Kwai was established in 1989 as the Delville Judo club. It started with 6 members at the Laerskool Delville. In 1992 Sensei Ernest Louw decided to become a full time judo instructor and introduced judo as an extra-mural activity at schools in the East Rand area. The success of the programme led to the development of a new family of Judo clubs: Kaizen Judo Kwai.

Kaizen refers to a Japanese philosophy which emphasises the search for excellence. It can best be translated into English as a gradual, never-ending improvement".

Kwai is the Japanese word for club or group.

The Kaizen Logo - a navy bonsai tree superimposed on a red sun against a white background. The red sun symbolises a sincere and passionate mind. The white background is an expression of gentleness (judo means 'the gentle way').

The judo that is taught at the Kaizen Judo Kwai is the same judo that was taught by the founder of judo, Professor Jigoro Kano, back in 1882 with the same principles and ideals of judo: "Best use of mental and physical energy" (Seiryoku Zenyo) and "Mutual welfare and prosperity" (Jita Kyoei).

There is only one kind of judo, unlike other martial arts eg. karate, therefore the judo we learn at the Kaizen Judo Kwai is the same judo you will find anywhere else in the world.