MOUNT Isa currently has its own Mr Miyagi although he comes from New Zealand and it is not karate that he teaches.
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David Miller, 63, is an unassuming man who recently moved to Mount Isa – having followed his wife who travels for nursing – and is a seventh degree black belt master in Ju Jitsu.
Mr Miller is offering lessons while he lives in Mount Isa although is yet to find a hall to base himself in. He also accepts students by interview.
“It’s not a sport, it’s a self-defence art form,” Mr Miller said.
I watched a demonstration with a guy 5 foot nothing turning people into pretzels and I basically signed up that night."
- David Miller
“There’s close quarter self-defence techniques and an ability to get away from grabs, and holds, and counter defences.
“I want to be able to give back to people what I have learned over the years.
“This is not suitable for kids.”
Mr Miller grew up in Palmerston North, in New Zealand, as a school student was bullied and pushed around.
“I remember a teacher at school years ago saying I would never amount to anything,” Mr Miller said.
15 years later he returned to the school in a blazer representing the country.
“It was not about gloating. It was about saying I have achieved something.
“It was a good thing to go back to that school assembly all those years after.”
He heard about Ju Jitsu in the late 1960s and attended a demonstration.
“I watched a guy five foot nothing turning people into pretzels and I basically signed up that night,” Mr Miller said.
“He was my mentor and he still is to this day.
“I guess it gave me a great sense of purpose.”
Mr Miller represented New Zealand and has competed on the international stage. This was during the World Ju Jitsu Championships in Brisbane, 1988.
The eyes of the world had been on Brisbane that year due to World Expo 88.
He was also on the Australasian Hall of Fame board until 2012.
Mr Miller in recent years has followed his wife who frequently moves to work. Recently they have lived in Rockhampton, Chinchilla, and Longreach.”
For more information contact David Miller on 0457 289 638.