Hemel Hempstead karate student passes black belt grading aged 78

Shihan Ben Craft with 78-year-old black belt Bill Stevens who passed his grading last weekend

Bill Stevens has become one of the oldest - if not the oldest - black belts in the country at the age of 78.

Over the weekend his success was part of a large karate event in Hemel Hempstead.

A local karate academy organised its annual seminar combined with grading .

Patrik Visnovsky (4th dan) Ben Craft (6th dan) Fernando M Angulo (5th dan) and Brad Candy (3rd dan) at the EGKF seminar

Bill , alongside other four students, passed his shodantest and is now among the oldest 1st dan black belts in the UK.

“Bill joined us when he was 72 as a white belt,” said Patrik Visnovsky, Bill’s teacher. “Today after such a hard work it was my honour to put black belt on this extraordinary man.

“It’s very rewarding.

The EGKF Seminar was attended by 50 students from all across the country, including two world champions and a European champion in karate.