How are students ranked in Kyokushin Karate?
There are 10 levels (Kyu) indicated by the belt colour leading up to the coveted black belt. In a nutshell, you begin as a white belt and progress through orange, blue, yellow, green, brown and finally black (“Shodan” or 1st dan) as your karate skills increase (see the BELT COLOURS page of our website to understand what these colours mean). There are also intermediate levels between each of the belt colours indicated by a stripe or bar on the belt with the next rank colour (eg. orange belt with a blue stripe, blue belt with a yellow stripe, yellow belt with a green stripe, etc). Higher ranked black belts are indicated with the presence of multiple gold stripes on their belts (eg. Sensei has 4 gold bars on his belt to indicate that he is “Yondan” or 4th dan). Other styles of karate may use different colours to indicate each level, but in general, the above belt colours are used in Kyokushin Karate and the International Karate Organization, Matsushima. The Sensei has the sole discretion
