Burning Sensation

Here's this guy - a Chinese kung fu master who allegedly has perfected the art of putting red hot knife blades in his mouth.

55-year-old Ding Zhongliang holds the blades in a blazing fire until the steel is so hot it is almost melting.

The Chongqing (central China) man - is reported to have mastered this feat after years of training in "secret" martial arts iron palm techniques. Allegedly, iron palm students toughen their hands in burning hot sand.

The kung fu master claims the knives don't burn mouth or leave even the smallest mark in his mouth. "After years of training and discipline I am now impervious to heat and fire," the man says.

All well and swell. Still I can't help but have this one -- perhaps silly -- question ... why?

MMA Robbery Suspect

Sweden -- A well known, 31-year-old active MMA fighter has been arrested in Sweden. The man is suspected to have participated in a recent large-scale armed heist against a cash depot in central Stockholm.

The air born robbers used a stolen helicopter and explosives during the raid on Wednesday. They broke into the building through the roof and flew off with bags of cash, according to police.

The pre-dawn heist, described as "daring" and "spectacular", is said to have stunned police in the Swedish capital. The authorities were allegedly unable to get their own helicopters off the ground because suspected explosives had been placed at their hangar outside of Stockholm.

A total of six men has so far been arrested, including a person suspected of flying the helicopter used in the robbery.

Kung-Fu Instructor, Probation

Colorado -- A well known and experienced kung fu instructor in Boulder, 55, who was accused of sexually abusing female students has been ordered to continue with mandatory counseling. He will also serve two years of probation and have no contact with any of his victims, a judge ordered.

The master had been charged with sexual assault and attempted sexual contact against two of his students and he pleaded guilty in August to one charge of misdemeanor harassment.

The case prosecutor told the judge the sexual contact the instructor had with his former students was wrong and unwanted. However, the prosecutor said that the cases would have been hard to prosecute as sexual assaults, according to dailycamera.com.

Religious Nutcases

From trueslant.com (Holy Sh**, It Really Is A Holy War):

"In 2003, I became obsessed with a nearby taekwondo school that was also a fundamentalist Christian 'mission.' I myself have been a student, instructor, and competitor in taekwondo for some time and it just never occurred to me that roundhouse kicks could be used in the name of Jesus."

"I don't know if it was Divine intervention or just a serious sense of the perverse that made me go and spend an evening with them, but I went and what I found out that night changed my life. It scared the s*#t out of me."

Oh, not because I realized I was a sinner and need to be saved. I've made my peace with hell as my future residence a long time ago. But because these people were not just kicking for Christ, but they were clearly very much a part of a larger military-sponsored mission to convert soldiers to fundamentalist Christianity."

Militant Martial Arts

Indonesia -- Seemingly innocuous martial arts sessions for a couple of Indonesian boys in their village, turned out to actually be the first steps towards being molded into suicide bombers and militants according to nytimes.com.

It is alleged that efforts to recruit malleable boys at schools and sports clubs is a routine method used by Southeast Asian militants to cultivate the next generation of separatist rebels and suicide bombers.

A group of boys discovered the true purpose of their martial arts classes when their instructor, was proven to be an associate of the mastermind behind a string of suicide bombings. The Malaysian-born mastermind was reportedly being harboured in instructor's house.

Martial Arts in School

UK -- At a Derby primary school, young students are set to become some of the first in Britain to take martial arts classes -- such as karate, ju-jitsu and kick-boxing -- as part of their regular lessons, rather than as an out-of-school or after school activity.

"The classes are not just about physical activity but also about self-discipline and respect, which are at the heart of martial arts. In many ways, it will mean PE is an extension of the work we do on anti-bullying and stranger danger in personal, social and health education classes," the school head teacher said according to thisisderbyshire.co.uk.

Compensation Claim Fraud

Popular social networking Web sites such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn are increasingly being searched by workers' compensation claims investigators in order to help insurers and employers fend off bogus claims, according to workforce.com.

Investigators say that some claimants supposedly too disabled to work are posting locations and dates for their upcoming sports competitions or rock band performances - that they might boast of new businesses launched and even include date-stamped photographs of their physical activity.

In one such case, a judo instructor -- claiming a total and permanent back injury -- posted the dates and location of his judo classes, said the president of the fraud and special investigations unit of an Orlando, Florida-based insurance claims investigation service.

WTF Politics Again

The South Korean government is reportedly denying rumors that it is covertly backing a candidate for the upcoming presidential election in the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) , claiming such accusations are groundless.

"The Korean government has nothing to do with the WTF election,'' an official of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said.

One of four applicants for the WTF top job, Vice President Nat Indrapana of Thailand, stirred up controversy at the British International Taekwondo Tournament in Manchester, which ended on August 29.

Mr Indrapana allegedly said that he and the South Korean culture, sports and tourism minister, had reached an agreement that the main office of the WTF would be built in Seoul if Indrapana, who is a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), was to be selected as President of WKF.

TKD Hijab Allowed

The governing body of WTF has overturned its decision from 2007 to ban female competitors wearing a traditional hijab under their headgear.

The taekwondo federation said it hopes this decision will help the sport promote gender equality at the upcoming world championships.

The 2007 ruling led to the exclusion of many Muslim women from WTF tournaments. "We believe that our respect for others' cultures and beliefs will allow taekwondo to enhance its status as an Olympic sport," said the chairman of the federation's technical committee.

Sad, But True

Boy, oh boy, do I ever agree with the sentiment below. Sad, but unfortunately true. In my 30 plus years of teaching, I have experienced the same way too many times.

From Mike Davidson in mirror.co.uk ('Fiona, you were right'): "I was a judo coach for 30 years and concluded that there are parents who will give their children anything but time. My judo club was a cheap babysitting service - very few parents stayed to encourage the children."

"One day I was talking to parents, when a lad came up, hugged my legs and said: 'I wish you were my dad'."

"I was the one giving him my time, attention and encouragement. His parents didn't have the time."

The Strongest MMA Fighter

Snicker, snicker...

According to examiner.com and Ted Gambordella, Mariusz Pudzianowski has it all. It is said he has big arms, huge chest, small balls and no MMA talent.

It is referred to the point that he has reportedly practiced karate for 11 years and made it to green belt. This leads to the conclusion that in another 22 years he probably will be a black belt in karate and 25 years a purple belt in Jiu Jistu.

And what's this talk about the use of steroids in MMA? Nah ... it can't possibly be?

Attempted Rape

UK -- (Scotland) A 40-year-old school teacher and judo instructor and has admitted he attempted to rape a nine-year-old boy during a trip to France.

The martial arts black belt and head coach at a children's judo club in East Kilbride was a principal pastoral care teacher at a Glasgow secondary school.

The man, who was a captain of Glasgow University judo club was arrested in Scotland in April and first appeared in court on April 15, according to eveningtimes.co.uk.

Teacher's Shame

UK -- A British court heard how a school supervisor had an affair with a 15-year-old pupil. The same school has had four previous sex scandals, according to metro.co.uk.

The 31-year-old man, who had just been recruited to replace a married female teaching assistant accused of having a relationship with a teenage boy, was said to have ignored warnings about inappropriate behaviour - embarking on the sexual relationship with the teenager.

The girl reportedly joined a martial arts club run by the man and advertised on posters he allegedly put up at the school.

"We had sex seven or eight times. I would go to meet him at the martial arts club," the girl told the court.

That's So Gay

UK -- A Canadian, petite female martial arts instructor reportedly knocked out a Coldstream Guard for "dancing gaily" during a fracas at a Woolwich Barracks Christmas ball in 2008.

The 24-year-old, 5ft 3 karate instructor, supposedly became enraged at the sight of soldiers dancing in a "gay" camp manner and proceeded to floor a Lance Sergeant with a single punch.

The woman also threw a Sergeant into a sound system and punched his wife.

The woman, who is said to have attended the event with her husband, who was teaching unarmed combat at the barracks, reportedly shouted "[this] should not be allowed in the British Army".

Sword-Wielding, 2. dan

A man, described as emotionally disturbed, made violent advances with a sword toward the police during a standoff at a residence in Mullica Township on September 2, according to shorenewstoday.com.

The first arriving officers found the 25-year-old man -- said to be second-degree black belt and a martial arts instructor -- holding an approximately 30-inch-long sword, police said.

A standoff situation evolved and the situation continued for approximately 90 minutes, according to reports. The subject was taken into custody at about 6 p.m.

Fighter's Death Investigated

Texas -- A 28-year-old professional mixed martial arts fighter was found shot to death on the steps of a Catholic Church Sunday morning in Muleshoe, and police are investigating the case as a suspicious death.

Police said the man had just become a pro fighter in recent months and had lived in Muleshoe for years, according to cnjonline.com.

An Attempted Kidnapper

Washington -- A 27-year-old man is accused of trying to kidnap a 16-year-old Battle Ground girl said he was doing it for sex and money and that he had planned it for a month, according to court documents.

The man apparently taught taekwondo at a location in Vancouver and instructors said he had worked there off and on for three or four years, according to katu.com.

He was said to have been teaching all ages, including other children and teens, but the school said they never had any problems with him.

Martial Arts Cheat

UK -- Putting 'martial arts' as a hobby on a council application form will probably never do you any harm ... unless you're a benefits cheat who have claimed £50,000 incapacity pay-outs while at the same time working as a caretaker.

A 43-year-old man did exactly that, and also claimed a further £30,000 in housing and council tax benefits - in effect almost doubling his salary - over more than a decade, according to telegraph.co.uk.

Karate Trainer in Saudi Jail

Judo karate? That's a new one.

Saudi Arabia -- Usman Shah, a 28-year-old martial arts and "judo karate trainer", left Pakistan for Saudi Arabia in 2002 - hoping for a better future for his family.

He began working as a labourer and then started as a martial arts instructor in a training center in Abha, according to dailytimes.com.pk.

Allegedly, he was then arrested by Saudi authorities in July 2007, under the pretext of being an Al-Qaeda activist.

According to his mother, her son has not been presented in any court. The family also said they have approached Pakistani authorities including (former president) Pervez Musharaf without any progress so far.

MMA Murder Suspect

Hawaii -- A 29-year-old Honolulu man have been arrested in connection with the murder of an 18-year-old female, according to honoluluadvertiser.com.

The arrested suspect is described as a freelance MMA fighter with two prior convictions.

The teenager was found dead August 24 in an alley adjacent to the housing project where she lived. The high school graduate was strangled, according to police reports.

Real Jew-Jitsu

Just what we need - more gun-toting religious martial arts fanatics...

New York -- Fearing jihadists might attack synagogues during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a group of rabbis has allegedly developed a program to turn average shul-goers into "lean, mean fighting machines", according to nypost.com.

The group, which calls itself the International Security Coalition of Clergy, was founded by Queens Rabbi Gary Moscowitz. He boasts a black belt in karate, says he teaches martial arts and was a NYPD officer for nine years.

He was reportedly fired from the force in the early 1990s...

Now, he's teaching basic and advanced fighting moves to others -- how to take down a terrorist by the neck, using a table as cover from gunfire and executing a nifty running somersault while drawing a gun.

"Jews are not like Christians," he said. "If I turn my cheek, I'm coming around to make a kick."