New Rape Charges

Update June 17, 2011: The former karate instructor has been sentenced to 80 years in prison by a Tulsa jury.

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Oklahoma -- A 38-year-old former felon and karate instructor - who used to teach women self-defense (!) - has been hit with new rape charges, according to newson6.com.

The man was a reportedly a karate instructor in Tulsa when he was arrested in 2010 for attacking a woman walking to her car.

While he was in court on that case, detective from Broken Arrow arrested him for rape, kidnapping and assault with a dangerous weapon for a case stemming from 2009.

"Marital Arts" Fighting

China -- While the majority "marital arts" fighting begin after the knots have been tied, this doesn't always seem to be the case.

Two Chinese kung fu sisters, Xiao Lin and her sister Yin (penned as experts, of course) claim they will not get married until their suitors has proven worthy by beating them in combat, according to metro.co.uk.

It is evidently an option to choose between open-hand combat or any weapon the suitors may wish. However the sisters say they won't be holding back. "If they can't beat us, they aren't worthy," 22-year-old Lin says.

A three-day "fighting festival" will allegedly be held in Foushan. The sisters will be masked throughout the challenges, so the men must risk life and limb without even knowing what their potential brides-to-be look like.

Let me see if I get this right...

First you risk getting your furry behind whooped royally. Then, if you win, you may claim your prize without really knowing what it looks like? What if the sisters here end up being butt ugly? Will a "Thank's but no thank's" or running for cover lead to a violent rematch of sort?

I guess I'll be more than happy to pass on this one :-)

More Hijab Trouble

Iran -- The Iranian national karate federation (IKF) have banned the Shitoryu Shukokai Union style for women following an international tournament held in Germany.

During the World Championships, the youth athletes were forced to unveil their hijab (a religious Islamic head garment), according to tehrantimes.com.

The Iranian team was reportedly forced to compete in the World Championship without wearing hijab after they were not allowed to participate in the event by the organizers.

"The offenders should be punished (...)," a representative of Iran's Karate Federation Alireza Ahi, has said.

Alleged TKD Sex Assault

Update (December 12, 2009): The 52-year-old Edmonton taekwondo instructor has been found guilty by a jury of 13 of 17 sex-related charges.

The jury acquitted him on four charges relating to three of the nine female complainants.

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Canada -- Nine people, two adult women and seven children, have reportedly accused a taekwondo instructor in Edmonton of sexual assault and other related crimes.

The two women are among 20 witnesses expected to be called during a 10-day trial. The court heard the accused had been teaching taekwondo since 1994, according to edmontonjournal.com.

Most of the incidents are said to have occurred during classes that were held after school hours in public school gymnasiums, between 1998 and 2007.

A 25-year-old woman who took several taekwondo classes with the defendant in 2005, told the court how the instructor touched her breast and her bottom during stretching exercises in the class.

"He gave me the willies, up and down," the woman said. "The shivers."

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.

She'll Get Her Medal

In 1959, 24-year-old "Rusty" Kanokogi (then Rena Glickman) had to disguise herself as a man in order to compete. At the time it was not allowed for women to compete in judo leagues.

Together with her team, she won a gold medal in the YMCA state judo (N.Y.) championships. However, the judges later revoked her medal.

Now, at the age of 74 and probably America's highest ranking woman in the sport, she will finally receive the gold medal she won 50 years ago.

Kanokogi is a pioneer in women's judo. Her accomplishments include lobbying the IOC to recognize women's judo as an Olympic sport.

First-Degree Assault

Arkansas -- A 25-year-old woman has reportedly been charged with first-degree assault for allegedly beating another woman unconscious at a motel in Osage Beach.

Police were called to the motel about 8:45 p.m. Saturday in response to a report of an unconscious woman lying in the hall on the third floor.

Police said the 25-year-old suspect had allegedly punched the victim and knocked her to the floor. The aggressor, who police said has martial arts training, had continued to punch and kick the other woman, according to news-leader.com.

An 'Expert Helper'

New Zealand -- An unemployed Northland man, 47, with a history of sex offences against women, has appeared in court. The man has allegedly claimed he wants to help 'wayward teenage girls'.

Northernadvocate.co.nz reported how the man deliberately targeted young women in public places.

December 11 2007, he approached an 18-year-old woman in a Whangarei bus terminal. He then supposedly told the woman that his girlfriend had been killed in a fight after her throat was slit. Claiming he was a martial arts expert, he then tried to show the woman some taekwondo moves.

He touched the young woman's chest and only took his hands away when a member of the public turned up.

While on bail, he assaulted another woman indecently in Whangarei. He went into the room where she was staying twice, touched her chest and said he was a martial arts expert.

Former TKD Teacher And Rapist

Connecticut -- "He is a monster,"a female drugging and sexual assault victim wrote, adding that the man should stay off the streets as long as possible.

The man in question is a former state department computer specialist who also ran a taekwondo school in Glastonbury, according to journalinquirer.com.

The 44-year-old man was convicted of drugging four women he dated an sent to prison in 2006. The man recently got five-year sentences in three new, similar cases.

Fed-Up Hospital Worker

Saudi Arabia -- In Madinah, a receptionist at a private hospital allegedly got fed up with an irate woman. The Filipino receptionist used her karate background to subdue the other woman.

Police intervened, according to reports and the two combatants were taken to a police station, according to arabnews.com.

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.

Update

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President Wants Martial Arts Training

India -- Ms. Pratibha Patil, the President of India, has called out for implementation of stern laws against sexual harassment of women at work. She also wants what she refers to as "stringent action against those indulging in teasing and molestation."

One important step in the direction of empowerment of women is to impart physical education like judo and karate for self-defense to female students from a very early age, the President said while appealing to all the women to fight inequality.

The objective of such training would be to "make them physically strong and to build-up self-confidence to face the challenges of life".

Squidoo Updates

Please observ, the Squidoo lenses have been discontinued, and you can find our new home here:
http://martialartsantics.blogspot.com

I have updated my martial arts Squidoo lenses, and will be adding more stuff there on a regular basis.
Do make sure you drop by. Oh, and a major part of any income from them goes to charity...

Children's martial arts
Self defense for women
Martial arts gifts
Deadly martial arts

Oh, and let's not forget - any comments in the guestbooks will be greatly appreciated too :-)

Wheelie Polite

India -- In Kolkata (Calcutta), a Fulora Foundation taxi service uses female drivers trained in judo and karate. This is according to telegraphindia.com.

The foundation managing trustee, Arun Sabnis, said they decided to launch the service after seeing incidents happening with women in the city.

"All our female drivers are trained in martial arts, Mr Sabnis said.

But like the commercial says: That's not all... Reportedly, the drivers will be polite, too. How about that - polite taxi drivers...

"Our drivers have been groomed in etiquette," Mr Sabnis said.

Bangalore IT/BPO Companies

India -- According to dnaindia.com, following recent incidents that have questioned the safety of women, Bangalore IT/BPO companies in have decided to train their employees in martial arts.

Several large companies are now part of the martial arts bandwagon that was initiated five years ago.

"When up against tough situations, the training gets out of a potential trap," an engineer said. "I'm now better placed to handle problems," says a software professional who is into kickboxing.

A HP spokesperson says, "After the Pratibha Murthy murder, we introduced 'Give it to them' where employees are trained to fight attackers."

Female Ninja Robbers

Girls - ladies - will you please leave these stupid male antics alone? I mean, guys like us need to have at least some really stupid acts to ourselves - dressing up in daft ninja costumes should be considered one of them :-)

Story:
Pennsylvania -- Police in suburban Pittsburgh say two women dressed as ninjas were responsible for the hold-up of a gas station, according to thepittsburghchannel.com. The robbery was caught on the store's surveillance camera.

The robbers were armed with a dagger and a sword, and they allegedly tied up the female clerk before robbing the place.

Aggressive Not Angry

Here's a great article about Muay Thai for women.

Amongst other things it talks about being aggressive without being angry - something is vital to all fighting arts.
This statement really rings true: "Overcoming fear is half the battle in any situation -- whether it's in the ring or everyday life."

It does sound though like this is more of a fitness/work-out thing, rather than actual fighting.

No Head Scarves

Sweden -- Eleven female Iranian athletes have not been allowed to participate in a karate competition in Kalmar, because they refused to remove their traditional Islamic head scarves.

The women athletes was to take part in the Konishi Cup competition, but ended up as spectators.

According to the rules, competitors must not wear jewellery, necklaces or any type of head gear and the judge of the karate tournament said he wouldn't make an exception in this case.

Source

Practical Sword

Finally - Apperently a sword being put to good (practical) use!

Story:
New Jersey -- Police said a 61-year-old woman was letting her dogs out at a home in Beverley when man barged into the back door at about 10 p.m. Monday night.

The woman's daughter was upstairs when she said she heard her mother screaming."I came downstairs and he was standing there beating her with a board," the daughter said. The suspect turned his attention to the younger woman when she intervened, striking her with the board and punching her in the head, she said.

But the daughter decided to fight back. She said she ran upstairs and grabbed a Samurai sword, which she collects. With sword in hand, the young woman ran down the stairs and the suspect ran out the door and fled on a bike.

The older woman was taken to hospital where she received 18 stitches, eight staples and suffered a concussion in the incident. The younger woman was also given several stitches.

Source