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Peter Ogilvie KARATE CREATES QUALITY KIDS
copyright Marc Wickert (previously published in Fight Times) Peter Ogilvie was born in Lismore, New South Wales, and due to an abundance of adolescent energy, he decided to take up playing junior rugby league for one of the town’s local clubs. At fourteen, Peter relocated to the Gold Coast, and later had a promising career playing rugby league for the Nerang Roosters. Because of his size and speed Peter was in demand as both a winger and a lock, but preferred the full-contact aspect of crash-tackling the big guys, so he concentrated on mainly playing in the forwards. During the game’s off-season Peter missed the body-pounding and physical demands of league, so he enrolled in karate classes with fellow team mate, Bill Wakefield. "I instantly loved karate and its challenges. But it was necessary for me to move to Brisbane in order to find work, so the karate was put on hold until I returned to the Gold Coast some ten years later, only to discover Bill had become an instructor and had his own club going. I then recommenced my study in Shotokan Karate with him," says Ogilvie. For Peter, martial arts has become a way of life and he has attained his second Dan in Shotokan and third Dan in Arnis. As well as training under some of Australia’s leading instructors, Peter has also travelled to Japan to further his studies, and after a third visit, Ogilvie was awarded the title of Sensei by Ashihara instructor, Yoshitsugu Suzuki (Fight Times Vol 8/Issue 6), for his outstanding dedication to karate.
"My martial arts skills have really improved from the visits to Japan, but the first trip was definitely the most demanding, as I had to prove myself to the Japanese in order to be accepted by them. I was with the Australian team. We’d train hard every morning and then just do full-contact sparring at night. Afterwards, they’d do up these large herbal spa-baths for us, and as we all soaked in them, you could see all the bruises coming out in your skin, and the next day they’d be gone. We’d go through this each night, pounding into each other, and then sitting in the baths and watching the bruises and welts come out." As well as being a fine martial artist, Peter has also earned a reputation for the wonderful work he has done with kids. Not only does he train them in the arts, but Ogilvie also gives many of his young students a direction in life. "I believe when troublesome kids come along, a lot of instructors palm them off because they think they are too much of a problem to look after. But I find with these kids, if you stick with them and turn them around by teaching them a bit of discipline and work on some character building, then their whole world will improve. Next thing you know they have a better attitude, their schoolwork improves, and they have a better relationship with their parents and teachers. This is all because you spent a bit of time on them in the beginning instead of putting them in the too-hard basket." Peter agrees that the troublesome kids can disrupt the class and be a bad influence on the other kids, but states that that is only if the instructor doesn’t have control and isn’t consistent.
"You have to let them know where the line is drawn, and if they cross it you have to pounce. You have to be diligent and put guidelines down. They are looking for discipline and a direction in life. Once you achieve a code of conduct it is easy to maintain. A few of the kids I had were a real problem, but I managed to turn them around and the next thing you know they’re coming home from school with gold stars. "For a lot of kids, street gangs have replaced the family unit. Suicide has also become an option for many teenagers. Youngsters without discipline don’t know how to cope when things in life get tough, and if they don’t have anyone showing interest or giving them direction, through such activities as karate, then the kids don’t have a reason to continue. This lack of discipline will bring society down one day, because there is no encouragement or guidelines for our youth," says Ogilvie. Frequently parents of the kids I train come up at the end of the classes and thank me for the way their child has developed. And you can see that the kids walk with a much better posture. Their improved agility and reflexes enable them to be better at school sport, and because they have confidence, they are less likely to be bullied. Bullies always like an easy mark."
When Peter isn’t busy helping students through his martial arts instruction, he can be found at the Fight World martial arts store in Southport, which he has been the proprietor of for the last two years. The Fight World store doesn’t just carry a wide rang of self-defence products, but is a meeting place for martial artists to share tips and yarns about their pastime. On any given day, many of Australia’s most elite artists can be found there chatting with Peter. And the walls are adorned with pictures and gloves signed by such names as Muhammad Ali, Wayne Parr, Paul Briggs, Joe Bugner, Stan The Man, Sam Greco and Kosta Tszyu. "The shop definitely is a meeting place," says Ogilvie. "And I’ve built it up over the past few years. I now have people coming in for boxing equipment, Kendo armour, uniforms, mats, instructional books and videos, and the latest edition of Fight Times. I try to cater for everyone regardless of how obscure their discipline. And it’s always nice to meet people from other styles."
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