Sunday, April 27, 2008

Sword Play Gone Wrong

Playing with samurai swords at 1:45 a.m.? Hmmm... Ninja with bad friends or just some party animals?

Canada -- Thestar.com reported about a man who was sent to hospital with a punctured lung. He was allegedly injured during a simulated samurai sword fight at a martial arts dojo in Toronto.

Police said an ambulance called to the place around 1:45 a.m. found a man who had been stabbed while he and a friend were playing around with the sword.

According to reports, the man who stabbed will not be facing charges, and the victim is expected to recover.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

40 Years in Prison

Florida -- A 38-year-old Kissimmee karate instructor has been sentenced to 40 years in state prison according to orlandosentinel.com.

He was found guilty in February by a jury of multiple counts of sexual activity with a child, lewd or lascivious battery, and lewd or lascivious molestation. The Circuit Judge who sentenced him, called him "a predator in every respect."

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Judo Throw?

UK -- Somersetcountygazette.co.uk had this news brief titled: "Woman breaks man's leg with judo throw."

Allegedly, a 22-year-old Taunton man had been attacked by a woman - described as "stocky, in her 20s". The man suffered a broken leg and a dislocated ankle as the woman "threw him to the ground, martial arts style."

Now what I would like to know is how these folks knew it was judo (or martial arts for that matter)? Was the woman wearing a gi? Did she bow to the man before tossing him about? Did she boast about her powerful osoto gari? Was there a referee handing out a foul for the use of excessive force? Or is it possible, just possible that this was any old grappling throw, foot trip, or leg sweep.

Heck, the way some folks watch show wrestling, I wouldn't be surprised if she had some Hulk Hogan moves going for her :-)

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Breaking New Ground

Now this is some great news the way I see it. Way to go!

Story:
Wales, UK -- Vale Karate is Britain's first officially recognised association to cater specifically for children with special needs, according to icwales.icnetwork.co.uk. Chief instructor Rob Copeland runs a specific class once a week at Barry YMCA.

The recent Welsh Karate-Kai Invitational had two categories for these youngsters with an under-12 and an under-18 event.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Impressive!

"The weaker sex", my furry behind; this is impressive!

Story:
South Carolina -- Cindy Gresko from Greenwood gave birth to her second son February 21, according to indexjournal.com. Naturally, in the three weeks since, she has done the normal things one is likely to do after giving birth: preparing baby bottles, getting up in the middle of the night and singing lullabies.

However, she has also delivered roundhouse kicks to the face... Saturday, she was one of several students who were tested to receive black belts in taekwondo.

The woman said she took a week off after her son's birth, then started slowly working on her techniques and forms for the test.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Hijab Allowed in Karate

As a result of discussions between IKF (International Karate Federation) officials and the Iranian Karate Federation Chief in Morocco, women are being allowed to compete in the Asian Games wearing hijab.

The championships is to be held in Malaysia in about six months from date, according to tehrantimes.com.

Monday, April 07, 2008

Not an Expert?

Here we have a man who may have just a hint of a tiny, insignificant anger management problem. And since all martial arts people are the embodiment of absolute peace, human kindness and self-control (... so I am told) - this guy must have used a "karate-style" belt belonging to someone else to try and strangle his partner.
It is also quite obvious it is not his belt all the time the reporter doesn't mention anything about the man being an "expert". As we all know, anyone with a belt is a legitimate, totally deadly martial arts "expert"...

Story:
Louisiana -- Police received a call from a 27-year-old woman who claimed a 45-year-old man had beat her and kept her prisoner in his house, according to a slidellsentry.com report.

The Alabama woman told police she and the man had been dating since January 8 after meeting on the Internet. She had come to Slidell to spend the weekend with the man.

During her visit, the man and the woman allegedly began arguing over their relationship. The woman said he made threats to her if she did not change her ways. The woman felt ill and wanted to stop the argument, but the man reportedly continued, and the argument escalated.

The man allegedly took away the woman's purse that contained her keys and cellular phone and locked them in another room in the house. The woman told police she then went to the bedroom, sat down on the bed and started to cry.

The man came into the bedroom, she said, and allegedly hit her on the back of the head so hard that she momentarily lost consciousness.

When she recovered, she said the man was very angry, and his verbal threats became dangerous. While he was holding a knife on her, he allegedly threatened to kill the woman's entire family before he killed her.

Then the attacker allegedly used a karate-style belt to choke the woman.

Thursday, April 03, 2008

Gus Has a Huge Heart

Florida -- Gus Egerer is a fun-loving person with a heart the size of a tank - someone who shares his will of steel with other disabled folks, according to wtlv.com.

Gus says the folks at the Cerebral Palsy center in Jacksonville are his heroes. They call Gus their hero.

Mr Egerer is a black belt in karate, something he achieved after losing an arm. Now he teaches folks with disabilities how to fight back and defend themselves.

Years after losing his arm in an acident, he severely hurt his back in a fall. Now he gets a morphine-like painkiller through a pump implanted under his skin. Even so, he hurts just about every day.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Instructor Appeared in Court

UK -- Thisissouthwales.co.uk reported about a Neath karate instructor who appeared in court accused of a string of child sex offences. Allegedly, the man has also previously taught tennis in the Port Talbot area.

The 41-year-old man allegedly carried out the offences against three young females in the areas of Port Talbot and West Yorkshire between 1993 and 2001.

The one-time professional Tennis Association coach, is reported to having a karate club in the Neath area over recent months.