Saturday, February 20, 2010

Kung Foolish in Thailand

Thailand -- A New Zealand expatriate who reportedly owns several businesses and is a noted kung fu master, was arrested in Pattaya, according to stuff.co.nz.

The man was allegedly dressed in full SWAT gear carrying a live automatic weapon in public, according to police.

When being approached by police, the "kung-fool" reportedly claimed he had been contracted by local police to train them on several occasions. He also produced several forms of identification, some of which was conflicting.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Molester at Karate School

Myfoxny.com is running an article about a convicted child molester who allegedly runs a karate school in Glendale, Queens (New York). At the school he is reportedly having close contact with young children on a daily basis.

Nine years go, the karate school owner was reportedly convicted of abusing an 11 year old girl sexually.

The man, who is labeled a level 2 sex offender, spent six months in jail and was also sentenced to five years of probation. This probation ended three and a half years ago.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Grand Master Confirmed Dead

Haiti -- 57-year-old taekwondo grand master Tran Trieu Quan from Quebec City in Canada has been confirmed dead, according to theglobeandmail.com. He went missing in the wake of the earthquake that hit in January.

His remains was identified in the rubble of a Port-au-Prince hotel, his family announced in a statement Saturday morning.

After General Choi died in 2002, Mr. Quan succeeded him as president of the International Taekwondo Federation, one of the sports' two main ruling bodies.

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Competitor Assaulted Police

Bermuda -- An international taekwondo fighter representing Bermuda has been given a suspended prison sentence following an assault on police, according to royalgazette.com.

Police reportedly attempted to stop the 21-year-old man, seeing him disobeying a traffic sign at a street junction in Warwick.

After following him for some time, police forced him to stop. When officers attempted to talk to the man, he refused to turn off his motorcycle.

The martial arts competitor then accelerated his bike hitting and knocking one of the officers to the ground before making a u-turn. He then reportedly elbowed the other officer in the face causing him to lose balance.

Monday, February 08, 2010

MA Expert Abused Children

UK -- More than twenty years after he was convicted of another sexual crime, a martial arts expert has been told he's facing jail for a series of sex abuse towards children, according to lep.co.uk.

The 43-year-old man -- who taught jitsu (sic.) and iaido in Preston -- was allegedly allowed to work with children, despite his conviction for indecency in 1989.

In court, he admitted to 13 serious sexual offences against three boys aged between 10 and 15. The offences reportedly happened between 1996 and 2007.

TKD Brothel for Sale

New Zealand -- A taekwondo Olympian who sparked quite a bit of controversy when he set up a brothel in an attempt to fund his Olympics campaign is now reportedly selling the business as a peace offering, according to tvnz.co.nz.

Logan Campbell set-up the "gentleman's club" in Auckland in 2009 to help fund his bid for the 2012 Olympics, a move which brought stern reactions from both the New Zealand Olympic Committee and the national taekwondo federation and jeopardised his place in future squads.

Fighting Like Jesus?

Newser.com asked in a recent article if Jesus might be getting too wimpy for us. And they go on telling us all not to fear.

There's allegedly a new breed of churches where religion is combined with MMA and it's being asked if this perhaps might solve all your spiritual problems.

"Compassion and love - we agree with all that stuff, too," one pastor reportedly said, "but what led me to find Christ was that Jesus was a fighter." Proponents are claiming this method is getting young men back into pews, while skeptics worry they're missing Christianity's whole point.

Kung Fu Saving Soccer?

China -- He has a passion for soccer and now, Kong Debao, a former businessman hopes the principles of kung fu can save Chinese soccer. For some time, Chinese soccer games game has been dented by gambling scandals involving officials, managers and players alike, according to chinadaily.com.cn.

Two Chinese Soccer Association vice-chairmen were arrested January 21 for their alleged roles in soccer gambling. Prior to that, a former Chinese national team coach, several club managers and players had been arrested. Chinese soccer fans have reportedly been disappointed by the many scandals and hefty salaries paid to players, while the international ranking of China has kept declining.

Kong Debao, who is the executive director of the SMK Kungfu Soccer Club, said that by bringing the merits of kung fu onto the soccer pitch, "he hoped players would become more agile and develop stronger minds, improving weaknesses among players".