More than a club

About the Club and Association

Potters Bar and Barnet UKA is run by Sensei Michael Cormack. Michael has competed in sport Karate since an early age, he has won the English National Championships several times as a child and adult, in both Kumite and Kata. He also won 2 World Cups as a child in Kumite and Kata, 2 European Championships as an adult in Kumite and a World Championship as an adult in Kumite.

Sensei Michael began his Karate journey at the age of 7 with Sensei Pete Barrow, in the style of Wado Ryu. Michael later moved to United Karate Association, where under Sensei Ian Cuthbert he changed style to Shito Ryu. He achieved 1st Dan aged 13 years old and 3rd Dan in 2013.

Sensei Michael believes the most important aspect of Karate is humility. "The ego is a dangerous thing and can cause harm to yourself and others around you, from work to family life. The ego can feed from promotions, titles, money, etc. That doesn't mean being successful is a bad thing, but when we train our skills to a higher level we must also develop the quality of our humility."

Sensei Michael's personal motto is "Better than yesterday". It is written on his Obe (belt) as a reminder to try and always become better than he was the day before, while maintaining humility of course!