KBI - World Lineage

How Budokan took shape

The inherited karate traditions, visiting instructors, technical exchanges and family transmission that contributed to Karate Budokan International.

Research by Bushido Karate Budokan (BKB) · 18 October 2026
KBI Grand Master approval pending. This research account may be revised following headquarters review.

How to read this lineage

A teaching relationship, an organizational appointment, a technical exchange and a photograph do not establish the same kind of connection. The labels below retain the distinctions in the original research.

Recorded teaching / lineage

A source identifies instruction or a teacher–student relationship. This describes what the source records; it is not archival proof of every detail.

Staff / institutional contribution

An instructor taught within, worked for, or graded for Budokan. This does not automatically establish personal tuition of Chew or every family member.

Reported / evidence incomplete

A claim appears in an account, but names, dates, duration or corroboration remain unresolved.

Reported exchange

Visits or technical exchanges are recalled. Specific techniques are not assigned to a named host without evidence.

Meeting / association only

A photograph or meeting records an association. It does not by itself establish instruction.

Formation overview

01 · Keishinkan

Anko Itosu → Kanken Toyama → Masanao Takazawa.
Masayuki Takasaka taught early Budokan students. His formal teacher–student relationship with Chew is less clearly documented. [S1–S4]

02 · Shito-ryu

Anko Itosu and Kanryo Higaonna → Kenwa Mabuni.
The intervening branch connecting this background to early Budokan staff is unidentified. Yoneda and Ishikawa taught Budokan classes. [S5, S6, S18]

03 · Okinawan exchanges

Seibukan and Meibukan are distinct traditions. Accounts of Chew and Tony’s visits and exchanges are attributed separately from the ancestry of those traditions. [S7, S19–S21, U1]

04 · Chinese martial arts

Ng Serng, Chan Ngai and Ng Dak Sam taught Chan Keng Wan. Chan’s 1967 appointment at Budokan is a recorded institutional contribution. [S9–S11]

05 · Early foundations

Physical culture, wrestling, wartime Japanese instruction and judo form part of Chew’s early record. Some teachers remain unnamed. Tony’s teenage taekwondo is separately reported. [S8, S12–S14]

Chew Choo Soot & the early Budokan teaching community

Budokan was established in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, in 1966. Its technical development continued after formation, with contributions reaching the organization through several routes. [S5, S8]

Tony Chew → Richard Chew

Richard confirms personal teaching by Tony. Family transmission and organizational succession are explained separately below. [S13, S14]

Keishinkan and Shito-ryu

Keishinkan / Shudokan

Sokon “Bushi” Matsumura: earlier ancestry listed by Boise Kei Shin Kan. [S2]
↓
Anko Itosu: principal teacher of Toyama. [S1]
↓
Kanken Toyama: opened Shudokan dojo in Tokyo in 1930. [S1]
↓
Masanao Takazawa: given the Keishinkan name / dojo by Toyama. [S1, S2]

Masayuki Takasaka is identified as a Keishinkan instructor within early Budokan. Takasaka’s teaching of Budokan students is recorded; his formal teacher–student relationship with Chew is less clearly documented. [S3, S4]

Shito-ryu: two principal roots

Anko Itosu (Shuri-te) + Kanryo Higaonna (Naha-te)
↓
Kenwa Mabuni: Shito-ryu brings together these two principal streams. [S18]

Intervening branch and teacher(s): unidentified.

T. Yoneda was recruited from Osaka. Ishikawa’s initial is T. in KBI history and K. in Soo’s account. They were early Budokan teaching staff; they are not automatically established as Chew’s personal teachers. [S5, S6]

Keishinkan dating and philosophy: sources give 1955 or 1958 for Keishinkan. Toyama did not insist on a separate rigid style identity. [S1, S2]

Mabuni’s broader background includes Arakaki karate / bo, Tawada sai and Soeishi bo; Go Kenki appears in his research circle. These are Shito-ryu context, not separately verified KBI transmissions. No direct Mabuni → Yoneda / Ishikawa link is asserted. [S18]

Okinawan contacts, Seibukan and Meibukan

Seibukan: Shuri / Tomari heritage

Chotoku Kyan → Zenryo Shimabukuro → Zenpo Shimabukuro. [S19]

Kyan’s reported sources include Matsumura Sokon; Oyadomari Kokan (Passai); Matsumora Kosaku (Chinto); Maeda (Wanshu); and Yara of Yomitan (Kusanku). Kyan Oyakata is named as an early teacher. [S19]

Zenryo founded Seibukan and taught Zenpo, who continued his father’s teaching.

Meibukan Goju-ryu

Kanryo Higaonna → Chojun Miyagi → Meitoku Yagi. [S20, S21]

Higaonna represents the Naha-te background; Miyagi developed Goju-ryu; Yagi was Miyagi’s student and established the Meibukan tradition.

These are the ancestry of a contacted tradition, distinct from evidence about personal instruction of the Chew family.

Visits, photographs and recollections

Mahadevan Kannan recalls the founder’s account of Chew and Tony’s courtesy visits and technical exchanges, including a Yagi connection. Exact training, dates and book wording remain to be checked. [U1]

Chew pictured with Zenpo: Mahadevan recalls this photograph in Super Karate. The caption has not been inspected; the photograph is treated as meeting / association, not proof of instruction. [U1]

Zenryo’s individual photograph: a karate pose is recalled in the book. Kamat separately reports that Chew studied under Zenryo; dates and corroborating records remain unverified. [U1, S7]

Zenpo’s enquiry about Tony: Mahadevan recalls this after attending Zenpo’s seminar. The respect he sensed is his impression, not an explicit technical ranking or teaching relationship. The seminar date and place have not been supplied. [U1]

Shotokan context and the Yamaguchi photograph

Itosu → Gichin Funakoshi is recorded in Keishinkan’s history. Shotokan influence in Budokan is reported, but the direct instructor(s) of Chew and his sons remain unidentified. [S1, S6]

KBI identifies Chew and Tony with Gogen Yamaguchi at the 1970 Tokyo world championships. Mahadevan understands this as a tournament photograph; no instruction or technical exchange is established by it. [S16, U1]

Chinese martial arts and weapons

Sifu Ng Serng

Hong Ga / Buddha Fist; short and long arm methods; pole, broadsword and spear; Die Da. Teacher of Chan Keng Wan. [S9, S10]

Sifu Chan Ngai

Choy Lee Fut; Six-and-a-Half-Step Pole. Teacher of Chan Keng Wan. [S9, S10]

Sifu Ng Dak Sam

Double Dragon Fists; butterfly swords; willow sword; Eighteen Step Spear. Teacher of Chan Keng Wan. [S9, S10]

Chan Keng Wan / Chan Keng Wah → Budokan headquarters, 1967

Associated with Jin Wu Koon and also named with Soong Leong Kwan (Double Dragon School) in Querubin’s memoir. Spellings vary across sources. [S9–S11]

Chan was employed as medical adviser and instructor in Double Dragon Pole, broadsword and spear. This establishes a staff contribution, not a proven personal apprenticeship by Chew. [S9, S10]

Chan’s teachers are ancestors of the Chinese teaching tradition present at Budokan; no direct line from those teachers to Chew is asserted. The Taiwan teachers and a second Hong Kong instructor remain unnamed. [S5, S8–S11]

Other training and later development

Kamat attributes Hung Gar, Choy Lee Fut, Tai Chi Chuan and Pa Kua to Chew; individual teachers and branch details are not supplied. Taiwan training is also reported. [S7, S8]

Kamat describes a later contemporary wushu initiative and Kwan Bu Ik Wushu Kwoon. Kamat’s own training under Mark Simon Batt should not be transferred into Chew’s personal lineage. [S7, S7b]

Early foundations and family transmission

Physical culture and wartime instruction

Chew’s early experience included weightlifting and grappling in Ipoh. No weightlifting or wrestling teacher is identified; Richard independently recalls his father’s weightlifting titles. [S8, S13]

A Budokan biography describes an unnamed Japanese officer exchanging karate and jujutsu instruction with Chew around 1942–1945. The officer’s name and karate affiliation remain open. [S8]

Judo and taekwondo

The Selangor account describes a Kyoto 3rd Dan of the Nishihara Butai teaching Chew and Khor Ghoon Hoe. Whether this was the same wartime officer is unknown. Chew and Khor were Selangor Judo Club instructors from 1951; H. Ichjima later served as chief instructor, but direct teaching of Chew is not explicit. [S12]

Richard recalls Tony’s teenage taekwondo accomplishments. His teacher, kwan and grading authority are unidentified; a specific technical contribution to Budokan is not established. [S14]

Chew Choo Soot

Founder and central Budokan teacher. The route to Tony below is described as family / institutional transmission. [S5, S8]

Tony Chew Cheng Thean

Early assistant to his father and teacher in Australia. Early Japanese teachers are not individually assigned to him. Richard explicitly confirms Tony as his personal teacher. [S5, S14]

Richard Chew Lum Thean

Tony’s personal student in Sydney. Began karate at seven, moved at eleven and received his black belt at fourteen; the examiner is unnamed. Richard later succeeded his father as caretaker: an organizational succession. [S14, S14b, S15]

Named teaching and grading relationships

Robert Sullivan: taught by Tony and awarded Shodan in 1969. [S4]

Wayne MacDonald: Richard is identified as his teacher. [S15]

Christopher Wong: Richard examined his Shodan in July 1980. This is a grading link; a sole-teacher relationship is not established. [S17]

Angie Chew appears in a published family-level account of multiple arts, but no named personal teacher is established here. [S22]

Chronology and continuing research

1930s–1940s — Physical culture, wrestling and wartime instruction; some names remain incomplete. [S8, S12]

1951 — Chew appears as an instructor at Selangor Judo Club. [S12]

Before formation, dates open — Chew and Tony’s dojo visits / exchanges in Japan, Okinawa and China, as recalled by Mahadevan. [U1]

1966 — Budokan begins in Petaling Jaya. Published dates differ: 17 July in KBI history and 23 June in Clement Soo’s recollection. [S22, S6]

1966–1971 — Soo recalls Shito-ryu, then Shotokan in 1967, then Keishinkan in 1968–1971. This describes a class chronology, not every personal apprenticeship. [S6]

1967 — Chan’s weapons appointment and Querubin’s Malaysian appointment. [S9–S11]

1969 — Tony grades Sullivan to Shodan. [S4]

1970 — Tokyo tournament photograph with Yamaguchi; no training link is inferred. [S16]

1980s–1990s — Kamat describes further kung fu / wushu development; KBI continued evolving after establishment. [S7]

Parallel branches and unresolved details

Kisaku Uchida was Takazawa’s student from 1963 and later taught in Malaysia, Singapore and Australia. This is a parallel international Keishinkan branch, not a proven direct teacher of Chew or his sons. [S1]

Querubin selected Nestor Principe, Vince Vasallo and Luisito dela Cruz in 1967. Eiichi Yamazaki replaced him in 1968; his precise Keishin-kai affiliation needs checking. No personal tuition of Chew is inferred. [S11]

Chronological correction: calling wartime instruction “Keishinkan” predates the reported 1955 / 1958 naming. It should be treated as a possible retrospective label, not a settled 1940s affiliation. [S1, S2, S8]

Priority archival checks include the captions and acknowledgements in Super Karate, Tony’s taekwondo teacher, Ishikawa’s initial and Shito-ryu branch, and the identities of the wartime officer(s), Taiwan teachers and other visiting staff. Repeated online biographies are not automatically independent corroboration.

Sources and attributed recollections

The references below are carried over from the supplied research chart. Source labels throughout the page refer to this register.

[S1] International Kei Shin Kan — History

[S2] Boise Kei Shin Kan — lineage and Toyama biography

[S3] Shobukan — published Toyama / Takazawa / Takasaka / Chew route

[S4] GKR — Robert Sullivan’s training history

[S5] Budokan Karate Academy — KBI history and early staffing

[S6] Clement Soo — 1999 anniversary recollection

[S7] Wu Tao Kwoon — Chew Choo Soot, My Mentor

[S7b] Mahesh S. Kamat — personal disciple biography

[S8] Budokan Karate-Do India — founder biography

[S9] Jin Wu Koon — Two Great Masters

[S10] ACE Martial Arts — Jin Wu Koon history

[S11] Emmanuel Querubin — FMAdigest Sikaran, pp. 60–61

[S12] Selangor Judokas — The Beginning of Selangor Judo

[S13] Richard Chew — Richard and his father, 29 August 2024

[S14] Richard Chew — My Extraordinary Brother, 5 March 2024

[S14b] Richard Chew — The Journey Continues, 30 January 2018

[S15] KBI Europe — history, Richard / Wayne and succession

[S16] KBI — gallery captions; 1970 photograph

[S17] AMAHOF — Christopher Wong’s grading record

[S18] World Shitoryu Karatedo Federation — history of Mabuni

[S19] John Sells — Seibukan / Shimabukuro history, PDF pp. 1–3

[S20] IMGKA — Meitoku Yagi biography

[S21] IOGKF — Goju-ryu history

[S22] World Budokan Council — family-level multiple-arts account

[S23] Super Karate — 1975 bibliographic listing; contents not inspected

U1 · Mahadevan Kannan

Recollections shared on 18 October 2026: book photographs of Zenpo with Chew and Zenryo in an individual karate pose; the account of Chew and Tony’s courtesy visits and technical exchange before formation; and Zenpo’s enquiry about Tony after a seminar. These recollections are attributed, not independently verified. No date is assigned to an individual visit.

Book to inspect: Super Karate, Kung-Fu & Oriental Weapons, catalogued as a 1975 KBI publication by Chew and Richard. Only the bibliographic listing was reviewed in the supplied research. [S23]