Steve is a senior instructor with JWR and is a 5th Dan (Godan). He is head of the technical committee and a co-founder of Jersey Wado Ryu.
Steve suffers from severe arthritis which makes his lifetime of dedication to Karate and rank of 5th Dan all that more impressive.
Steve trained with Ken-Yu-Kai Jersey under instructors Doug Joseph (8th Dan), and Andy Bree (2nd Dan) before being diagnosed with his arthritis, at which point he stopped training. After a consultation with a specialist in Juvenile Arthritis Steve was given a series of exercises to improve mobility and build strength. Steve’s father, Liam Ahearne (5th Dan) was teaching juniors at Ken-Yu-Kai and introduced these exercises into the class warm up, bringing Steve back into the class. Over time Steve’s mobility and strength returned and he started to stay in the class and restart his karate journey.
Note that Steve’s father, Sensei Liam Ahearne, was one of the greatest instructors to have ever taught in Jersey and JWR would not be in existence without him.
Whilst still training with Ken-Yu-Kai, Steve attained his 3rd kyu brown belt under Sensei Terry Pottage (9th dan) then progressed to 1st kyu under Sensei Doug Joseph (8th dan).
After changing club, and style alongside his father, Steve gained his 1st dan in Wado Ryu under Sensei Peter Spanton (9th dan) Higashi, in October 2000.
Steve continued training and started teaching in the club, achieving his 2nd Dan in October 2005 under Sensei Alan Flook (9th Dan), WKU.
In 2008 Liam retired from both work and karate, moving back to his homeland, Ireland, with wife Joan. At this point he handed the club over to Ryan, with Steve by his side, and their journey has continued.
Steve was awarded his 5th Dan in December 2019 by Sensei Alan Flook during a visit to the Bristol Dojo.
In recent years Steve’s physical health has suffered and has not been present in the dojo as much as he would like, but continues to support the club by looking after the finances, student membership and licences, and most recently the club website.
Outside of the dojo Steve enjoys spending time with his family who are all involved in St Peter’s Battle of Flowers where Steve is chair. He also loves classic mini’s and can often be found at local car shows and motorsport events.