At the age of 10, Dickson Muchiri, 26 chose
to join a martial arts group rather than roam the streets of Lucky Summer
estate in Babadogo ward, a place he refers to as the ghetto. With little
knowledge of what it was, he started with the hope of making something out of
life. He tells ME of his journey to becoming a martial arts
champion.
The starting point …
A martial arts training session is underway as
Dickson walks past, heading to a football play date. He stops to look at what
is being done and is impressed with the fighting techniques showcased by the
individuals. The man instructing them, Coach Hillary Wahanda, notices Dickson
and immediately invites him to join the group. It was to be his first martial
arts session.
“It was a way to avoid being bullied. In the
ghetto if you did not do this, you will suffer in the hands of those bigger and
older than you. I wanted to be a fighter and it was the only avenue I had come
across. You know in the ghetto, not all that you want is provided for you,” he
said with a chuckle.
As the interview progressed I noticed Dickson’s
eloquence and jovial nature by the way he comfortably spoke of his youth in the
ghetto. His tall stature and calm nature would tell how suitable he is for
martial art, as he sat opposite me in the boardroom of the Orange House office
along Valley Road.
Dickson immensely enjoyed the martial arts class
and on learning the basics of the sport majored in Onwado- a traditional form
of tae-kwon-do martial arts. He trained for five years in the art with the hope
of one day making the national team. He also participated in various local
competitions that were set up to build match fitness for the fighters with no
awards.
His parents grateful that he had found an avenue
to avoid the dangerous youth vices in their streets were skeptical about the
safety of the sport to their fifth born child.
“I attended training sessions everyday after
school and even on weekends. I had great passion. My parents supported me but
cautioned me about taking up the sport competitively. They were afraid I would
get hurt. I attended the tournaments without their knowledge until I got the
call up to the national team later. Had it not been for this art, I would have
been socializing with my friends; drinking and taking drugs.”
Secondary school was a difficult time in his
career as a martial artist. The school he attended, Joy town Secondary School,
did not participate in the sport; he was therefore forced to pass forward any
training and competitions to holidays only. It is at this time also that
wrangles within the martial arts federation developed and caused his coach to
split to form his own club that would participate in a different martial art,
Tong-il-Moo-do, a unique art that comprises of all the forms of martial arts;
kick boxing (kicks and punches), tae-kwon-do (kicks only), judo (more physical
and harmful, opponents look for joints to dislocate) and karate (low kicks an
punches).
Torn between two, Dickson a Bachelor of Arts
graduate, took a leap of faith and in 2005 chose to follow his Coach Hillary in
founding the Best Kickers Club. As the only student for close to two years, he
worked hard to meet the targets set and to build the sport to other young people,
his classmates and neighbours, but was unsuccessful. Though persuaded to join
the military to continue with the sport, Dickson opted to pursue his passion.
The United States International University
(USIU) become his home for four years, and though a challenge to raise the
fees, assistance from the school ‘work study’ program plus Higher Education
Loans Board bursaries facilitated his degree in International Business
Administration.
“It was easy for me to get the gist of the new
art, Tong-il-Moo-do, due to my experience in the previous one. It was difficult
to get people to join our team and we often concentrated on physical fitness
and not art. We had no facilities and often trained in Hillary’s house. We got
help from a church that allowed us to use their halls, which eventually become
our governing body. We are now over 50 team members. I could have easily gone
to the military, but that was not my path.” He said enthusiastically.
Achievements…
Dickson has a total of 21 gold, seven silver and
three bronze medals. In his most recent tournament, The 7th World
Martial Arts Peace Cup, held on March 2014 in Thailand, Dickson managed to bag
a gold medal and a trophy in the Tong-il –Moo-do category. He has also won many
awards in various military martial arts tournaments.
Campus tournaments were also good grounds for
his match fitness, bagging another two gold medals in competitions in 2007 and
2008 that led him into the leadership of the campus club and head of
facilities.
Dickson was scheduled to attend an invite to an
international tournament in Italy but poor support from the government and lack
of sufficient funds hindered him from this desired journey.
He expressed his disappointment,” We have been
forced to work with little resources. As a growing sport we hope that our
efforts will eventually bear fruit to the future Martial Artists. I will
continue with the sport, it fulfils me and hopefully in the next four to five
years, I will have certified myself as a Tong-il-Moo-do coach in Kenya”.
Giving back to the community…
The best kickers club has established branches
in slums and estates like Dandora, Kawangware, Rongai and Kabete in Nairobi as
well as in Mombasa where young people take the opportunity to learn the art.
“It was not easy to choose, but I did. If I did
not I would have been idling in the streets and end up like majority of my
classmates, that are either thugs or dead. The girls have numerous children
with no father. Tong-il-moo-do molded me to reach where I am today.” He said
confidently.
He added that the rules of art that govern the
sport are essential to the young people. The commandments and literature
learned through training and practice build good character. The foundation of a
church as a governing body makes it better as discipline of the students is
paramount.
Dickson and his team, with the intention of
exposing the youth to the sport and making them gain more interest, have
organized schedules for games and tournaments. He further states that
popularising the sport in those areas will persuade the youth and the children
to join in early enough and grow in the sport, and especially avoid
temptations.
Most of the members of the Best Kickers Club are
unemployed and they formed a SACCO to help them come up with enough capital to
start various businesses. Dickson, a committee member helps to advice on
business plans and ideas that can help the individuals prosper financially.
“ We are getting the youth out of the streets
and teaching them how to behave in life. Some of our members now own their own
business, we promote them through fundraising. We have businesses that venture
into fashion like salons and barbers, and entertainment through movie parlors.
I organize funds to host our tournaments. So far so good.”
Since November 2010 working at Orange-Telkom
Kenya has been a good experience for him and he has managed to rise in rankings
from Intern to Analysis and Reporting Manager. Apart from Martial arts Dickson
is a lover of football, and has played it even before joining coach Hillary’s
team.
“We are providing a solid foundation for martial
arts particularly Tong-il-Moo-do for the next generations in this country. Do
not fear to venture into whatever you love. Nothing comes easy, find your
potential, take risks and work with it. In the next few years Best Kickers will
provide participants for the Olympic games, as an entity and not part of the
military. I am happy with the far that we have come.” Dickson enthusiastically concluded.
Email: Bestkickersmartialartsfitnessclub.com
Photo courtesy of Mboya Paul
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