Staying in the sport you love by coaching

Nelson’s newest kickboxing gym, Kia Kaha Combat, is preparing to open their doors for the first time in August.

Josh Clarke has always dreamed of opening his own gym in town, having had almost two decades of involvement with the sport.

Having teamed up with the Tahunanui Community Hub as a non-profit club, he plans to keep costs low at just $5 a class, with proceeds reinvested into gear and renting the space.

“I want to have a place where I can build people’s confidence.

“My goal is pretty much to promote good mental and physical health. I like helping people. . . while also making it legit, so I can take students through if they want to fight.”

With previous experience running a kickboxing gym in Hamilton and with a wealth of international fighting experience, he’s eager to transition into the next stage of his combat career.

“I’ve been fighting since I was 18, off-and-on. I’ll be 38 in August, so it’s almost 20 years.

“I won’t be looking at fighting, and if I want to stay in the game, I should open a club.

“It turns into a lifestyle or an addiction. . . You kind of become a family.”

While Josh had to part ways with his gym in Hamilton, having passed it down to a friend, he says the desire to coach has always been there.

He’s also taught one-on-one and small classes off-and-on at home for a while, but says he wanted to make it more legitimate again.

“My wife Kauri has been pushing me to do it for a while. You change people’s lives.”

Josh’s passion and desire to help people through the sport is worn on his sleeve, with his eyes lighting up when he starts talking about it.

He got into the sport after watching it on TV and deciding to give it a go, saying he jumped in the ring pretty quickly and “got an absolute hiding”.

While his coach jokingly asked him if he was going to come back in the next week, Josh was hooked.

Having since fought internationally multiple times, including as part of the New Zealand team, he says he wants to give back to a sport that has given him so much.
Josh has previously held the IKO full contact national title and the light contact WAKO national title.

His most recent fight, in 2022, was under the tutelage of Nelson’s SMA gym and Sallie McArdle.

With first-hand knowledge of just how much help the sport can give people who are struggling at their lowest points in life, he’s excited for the opening of his own place to teach and train.

“I’m pretty keen on people who are just starting up, but I’m open to anyone.”

Classes kick off on Friday August 4 at 5:30pm, with plans to also run a Tuesday night class every week.

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