© Idōkan Poland Association “IDO MOVEMENT FOR CULTURE. Journal of Martial Arts Anthropology”, Vol. 14, no. 3 (2014), pp. 10–21 DOI: 10.14589/ido.14.3.2 PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF MARTIAL ARTS AND COACHING The Author has been practising karate (shotokan, kyokushin and others) since 1980. He holds 8 consecutive kyu ranks in kyokushinkai and was an instructor of this style. From February 1993 he has been practising karate idokan (zendo karate tai-te-tao), as uchideshi of GM Lothar Sieber. He was a runner-up in the kata competition at the tournament of the IMAF Tokyo 2000. He received 4 dan in nihonden karate and kobudo, and 7 dan in idokan karate. He actively participates in the circle of Polish and European karate as a leader of the IPA and IMACSSS. Wojciech J. Cynarski Chair of Cultural Foundations for Physical Education, Tourism and Recreation, Faculty of Physical Education, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów (Poland) e-mail:
[email protected] The European karate today: The opinion of experts Submission: 12.10.2013; acceptance: 18.05.2014 Key words: martial art, sport, European karate, aims, changes, sportification Abstract: Aim. From the perspective of the “humanistic theory of martial arts” [Cynarski 2004, 2006a] and the “general theory of fighting arts” [Cynarski, Sieber 2012] the author tackles the problem of the main directions of changes and institutional development of karate in Europe. He puts forward a hypothesis that sportification is not a dominant direction of changes in karate. Method. Three complementary test methods for qualitative analysis were used: an analysis of subject matter literature; long-term participatory observation and the method of competent judges / expert courts.