Karate (空手) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts under the influence of Kung Fu, particularly Fujian White Crane. Karate is now predominantly a striking art using punching, kicking, knee strikes, elbow strikes and open-hand techniques such as knife-hands, spear-hands and palm-heel strikes. Historically, and in some modern styles, grappling, throws, joint locks, restraints and vital-point strikes are also taught. A karate practitioner is called a karateka (空手家).
The Karate Kid is a 1984 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the first installment in the Karate Kid franchise, and stars Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue and William Zabka. The Karate Kid follows Daniel LaRusso (Macchio), a teenager taught karate by Mr. Miyagi (Morita) to help defend himself and compete in a tournament against his bullies, one of which is the ex-boyfriend of his love interest Ali Mills (Shue).
Benny Urquidez is an American kickboxer, martial arts choreographer and actor. Nicknamed "The Jet", Urquidez was a non-contact karate competitor who later pioneered full-contact fighting in the United States. He made the transition from point to full-contact karate in 1974, the year of its inception in the US, frequently fighting in bouts where the rules were ambiguous and contrasts in styles were dramatic. Urquidez is also known for once holding the rare achievement of six world titles in five different weight divisions, and remained largely undefeated in his 27-year career. His only loss came in a Muay Thai match which was shrouded in controversy, as Urquidez had only agreed to a no-decision exhibition, a clause which was ignored when the fight had ended.
The International Sport Karate Association (ISKA) is one of the major international bodies regulating sport karate and kickboxing matches, and is based in the United States. It was established in 1985 as a response to legal and revenue issues that sent the Professional Karate Association (PKA) into decline.
Bill Wallace is an American martial artist who was a Professional Karate Association world full-contact karate champion. He was the Professional Karate Association (PKA) Middleweight Champion kickboxer for almost six years.
Joe Lewis was an American kickboxer, point karate fighter and actor. As a fighter, Lewis gained fame for his matches in the 1960s and 1970s. He has twice been voted the greatest fighter in karate history, having won innumerable karate tournaments, and has attained the titles of "United States Heavyweight Kickboxing Champion," "World Heavyweight Full Contact Karate Champion," and "United States National Black Belt Kata Champion." Bruce Lee also considered him "The Greatest Karate Fighter Of All Time" and The Iron Sheik assented that "Joe Lewis was no jabroni." and "The Greatest Fighter Of His Time". He was also named by the STAR System Records as the "STAR Historic Undisputed Heavyweight World Champion" and is credited on their site as the "Father of Modern Kickboxing".
Jean-Yves Thériault is a Canadian kickboxer, kickboxing trainer, and author.
Takayuki Mikami is a Japanese master of Shotokan karate based in the United States of America. He holds the rank of 9th dan black belt in the art, awarded under the Japan Karate Association. In 1958, Mikami tied for first place in the All Japan Karate Championships. The following year, he became the All Japan champion in kumite (sparring) as well as kata (patterns). In 1961, Mikami won first place in kata again. He was also the first person to graduate from the Japan Karate Association's (JKA) instructor training program instituted by Gichin Funakoshi and Masatoshi Nakayama.
Christophe Pinna is a member of the French National Karate team. He is a multi-time World Champion (WKF). He is known for his roundhouse kicks.
The World Kickboxing Association (WKA) is one of the oldest and the largest amateur and professional sanctioning organizations of kickboxing in the world for the sport. Its official name is "World Kickboxing and Karate Association, however the logo uses World Karate and Kickboxing Association".
Budokan is a style of karate recognized by the World Union of Karate Do Organizations and the World Karate Federation. Karate Budokan International was founded in 1966 by Chew Choo Soot in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
Antonio José Díaz Fernández is a Venezuelan karateka. He is best known for winning gold medals in kata at the World Championships in Serbia (2010) and France (2012), winning of the World Games in Cali, Colombia (2013), and Duisburg, Germany (2015), and a silver medal in the World Championships in Japan 2008. He won bronze medals at the WKF World Championships in karate in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2014, and 2016 in the men's individual kata. He has also won 23 Pan American Karate Federation Senior Championships Medals 23 times to date.
Seidokaikan (正道会館) is a traditional full contact karate derived from Kyokushin by Kazuyoshi Ishii. Seidokaikan organized the first professional full contact karate tournament named the Karate World Cup. The Karate World Cup had special extension rounds; if the judge's decision was deadlocked after an extension round, the rules then allowed face strikes with fighters donning boxing gloves (kickboxing).
Rafael Aghayev is an Azerbaijani Karateka. He is a five-time World Champion, and eleven-time European Champion in his discipline.
Paul Noel Starling is an Australian martial artist renowned as a Gōjū-ryū Karate master. He was the most senior Caucasian student of Gōjū-ryū Gogen Yamaguchi, and is a world Vice President of the International Karate do Goju Kai Association (IKGA)
Ashihara kaikan is a modern full contact street karate developed from Kyokushin karate by Hideyuki Ashihara with influences from various martial arts including Muay Thai, Pankration, and Jujutsu with an emphasis on Sabaki, using footwork and techniques to turn an opponent's power and momentum against them and to reposition oneself to the opponent's "blind" spot. The style is focused on practical application in a real fight including multiple attackers.
Victor John-Charles is a British karateka. He has an 8th Dan black belt in karate and is the winner of multiple individual and team medals at the World Championship, World Games and European Karate Championships. Vic Charles came 3rd in 1983 television competition Superstars. Vic Charles was awarded an MBE for Services to karate in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 1989. This was the first time the sport of karate had been acknowledged in such a fashion. On retiring from competitive karate in 1990 Vic continued as Chief Instructor of British Sport Karate Association (B.S.K.A.) the Association he established in 1985. The Association dominated English karate competitions and won 2 European Club Team titles. The Association counted 3 World and European Champions as members Mervyn Etienne, Mike Sailsman, and Willie Thomas. Vic was appointed English National Coach in 1996 and became Technical Manager of the Performance Plan in 1997 until 1999. He was a member of the board of Karate England until 1999.
Dominique Valera is a French kickboxer and karateka, based in Lyon. He has a 9th Dan black belt in karate and is the winner of multiple European Karate Championships. Since retiring from competitive karate Dominique Valera has starred in French movies such as Let Sleeping Cops Lie.
Ludwig Kotzebue is a retired Dutch-Surinamese heavyweight karateka. He won individual gold medals at the 1977 European Championships and 1981 World Games, and a team gold at the 1977 World Championships, together with Otti Roethof and John Reeberg.
Karate was first introduced to American service men after World War II by Japanese and Okinawan karate masters.
