We like many others, were very saddened to hear of the untimely death from cancer of Mumtaz Ellahi.

He was a very well known and much respected Ju Jitsu instructor and community worker.

Mumtaz was one of the first to recognise the importance of sport in the community and he was instrumental in changing the attitudes parents had towards their children's health.

Moreover, through sport Mumtaz helped to bring communities together and instill a level of discipline into youngsters. Many youngsters will be thankful to Mumtaz for the belief shown in them when others did not.

The overriding concern for Mumtaz was always to help people of all ages reach their full potential regardless of their stature and fitness levels.

It is very rarely that we can say of someone that he really did make a difference to the neighbourhoods we live in, not through simple words but through his actions and ability to change what people thought of themselves and those around them.

We attended many of Mumtaz's Ju Jitsu sessions and it was amazing to see how in particular children loved taking part and the way parents respected him. The number of youngsters going to the sessions always seemed to increase.

The Bangor Street Ju Jitsu Club in Blackburn was set-up over 15 years ago and together with the Audley branch boasted over 150 members. Young and old were welcome to the club and Mumtaz took pride in sharing his extensive knowledge of the sport with everyone.

Born in Pakistan Mumtaz came to the UK at the age of ten and went to Pleckgate High School.

At the age of 16 he started work on the buses before realising his dreams of becoming a businessman. He was quite a businessman too and launched a series of fabric shops in the town.

It was in his teens that he began training in Ju Jitsu. He excelled at the sport and gained his first four blackbelt gradings from the British Ju Jitsu Association. He then launched his own association and aligned it to the World Ju Jitsu Federation.

Mumtaz set high standards for himself and became one of the highest ranking Asian Ju Jitsu instructor in the country when he achieved his Blackbelt fifth dan grading in 2004. He followed that by gaining his sixth dan in 2006.

However, in October 2006 he was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma Cancer.

His son Yasrab and cousin Husnain Khan, who Mumtaz had trained to second dan blackbelt levels, took over the running of the Ju Jitsu Clubs.

At his funeral held at Pleasington Cemetary, Blackburn hundreds of young and old from across the region stood side by side to pay their respects to a true champion of the community.

Sport can do many things for many people but sometimes it can bring whole generations together.

In a time when we the Asian community are accused of not integrating here was a man whose personality transcended all religious and cultural boundaries.

Back when Asian Image interviewed him at the time of his fifth dan grading although immensely proud of his acheivement, Mumtaz was happier at seeing some of his pupils at the club excel to greater heights.

For this very reason there will be many a lasting legacy of Mumtaz Ellahi. The biggest being that he may have changed many lives for the better without even knowing it.

Mumtaz Ellahi born 6 April 1961, died aged 46 on Sunday December 2 2007 and is survived by his wife and five children, Ajwer, Yasrab, Hussain, Farath and Maria and one grandson Zuhaib.