Jarred Cannonier said he wanted to up his output after losing a dull decision to middleweight champion Israel Adesanya last year. He did that in spades, setting a division record for most significant strikes en route to battering Marvin Vettori over five rounds capturing the main event at UFC on ESPN 47. Vettori actually opened strong staggering Cannonier several times with straight left hands. Appearing the much bigger, strong man, Vettori seemed in control. But Cannonier kept moving forward and his pressure paid off in the second as he landed a big overhand right that had Vettori in serious trouble. Cannonier than cut kick Vettori's legs out from under him landing some ground and pound and continuing to smash Vettori when he got back to his feet. Though he appeared ready to go out, the Italian fighter somehow managed to last the round and come out fighting in the third. Vettori was the worse for wear though, his face a bloody mess as Cannonier kept control of the action. He kept snapping Vettori's head back with right hands while mixing in some low kicks and takedowns. In the end, Cannonier took the unanimous decision to run his record to 17-6 as Vettori dropped to 19-7.

Black Belt Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Kim, the first American male to ever win a gold medal in taekwondo at the Olympics, passed away Friday at the University of California San Diego Medical Center at the age of 56. Born in Cerritos, Calif. to a father who ran a taekwondo school, Kim began training at the age of 2 and started competing by the age of 7. He was part of the American team that shocked the taekwondo world capturing four gold medals when the sport was included in the Olympics for the first time as a demonstration event at the 1988 games in Seoul, South Korea. Though the host country, which created the sport, had thoroughly dominated international taekwondo up to that point, Kim and his teammates, including fellow gold medalists Lynnette Love, Arlene Limas and Dana Hee, showed that America and the rest of the world was quickly catching up. Despite suffering from a fever and a broken toe, Kim upset South Korea's Jong-Suk Kim in the finals to capture the first heavyweight Olympic title. Prior to the Olympics, Kim told the Los Angeles Times he was motivated by a desire to please those close to him saying, “If I did this for myself, I probably wouldn’t work as hard as for my family and friends.” Kim would eventually earn a doctor of chiropractic degree and open his own martial arts school, the Jimmy Kim Taekwondo Center, in Laguna Niguel, Calif. Among his students was 2008 Olympian Charlotte Craig. Herb Perez, a friend of Kim's and fellow Olympic gold medalist, informed Black Belt Kim died from Dermatomyositis, a rare autoimmune disorder he had been suffering from for some time.

A thug pulls a gun, and with a flick of the wrist, the attacker spins through the air and lands with a thud. Bodies fly through windows, arms are graphically broken with an unnerving “snap,” and no matter what an attacker comes at our hero with, they are flattened in the blink of an eye. It was fast. It was exciting. It was the 80s action tour de force, Above the Law . In 1988, I was working at a video store. Incidentally, I should explain to younger readers that a video store was like streaming, only you had to pick up the stream in your car and then take it back again. Our store received a few copies of a new movie called Above the Law with a poster of a guy I’d never seen before looking steely-eyed and holding a gun. It looked like it would be another generic 80s action movie, but man, was I wrong. After seeing the movie fly off the shelf as quickly as it came in, I decided to check it out. As a fan of Chuck Norris, the first thing I noticed was that this was a very different martial art. It looked like nothing I had ever seen before. And who was this guy starring in it? Who was this Steven Seagal? I’d never seen him even as a bit player in any other movies and he didn’t look like the conventional action hero. During that time, muscled stars were ruling the box office. The tone of the movie was dark. The action was fast. I had to keep running it back. What the heck is he doing? Is it mind control? Aikido In the opening scene , Nico (Steven Seagal) is teaching an Aikido class. It was a good way to set up the story, introduce the character, and introduce the audience to the martial art that they would soon see applied out of the dojo and on the street. It also helped to differentiate aikido from karate and kung fu styles, by showing, rather than explaining, the philosophy. As Nico teaches the class, we see him demonstrate his signature clothesline takedown (Iriminage) against a variety of attacks. Nico levels his opponent multiple times with an audible thump. The voiceover narration provides the backstory, while a brutal randori against multiple opponents is shown in slow motion to help establish the utility of the art. I was sold on both the new star and the martial art, and I was less than ten minutes in. Above the Law In the 80s, the action film had become a staple of the decade. Stallone and Schwarzenegger were churning them out fast and furious. However, the movies were also getting quite silly. Giant biceps, giant guns, ever-larger explosions, and one-liner asides that were taking on a life of their own, were all common by 1988. The time was ripe for something different to slide into a less bombastic space. Above the Law stars the aforementioned Steven Seagal as Chicago cop, Nico Toscani. Once an intelligence officer, and still a martial arts badass, Toscani sees his years in the CIA come back to haunt him as he battles old rivals and new villains dealing in drugs and more. However, they soon come face to face with their reckoning in the form of Steven Seagal’s Nico, as he declares: “You guys think you’re above the law, well you ain’t above mine.” Though the film’s star was not well-known, the great supporting cast, which was made up of new faces and established actors, was instrumental in scenes where no one is flying through a window. Above the Law features Sharon Stone as Nico’s wife Sara in one of her early film roles. In an inspired choice, Nico’s partner is played by the legendary Pam Grier. And in casting to type, the villain Zagon was portrayed by screen veteran Henry Silva. Directing it all was Andrew Davis, who was no stranger to martial arts action films, having previously directed Chuck Norris in Code of Silence(1985) . Seagal would reunite with Davis in 1992 for the action film classic, Under Siege(1992). Having control of a film is usually something most actors aspire to, but from the beginning, Seagal had a great deal of influence on the movie as he is credited as one of the film's producers, as well as contributing to the story and as the aikido choreographer. Enter Steven Seagal Steven Seagal seemed to have appeared out of nowhere as a fully formed action star. He had hit upon a formula that gave moviegoers a hero that was different and martial arts action that was exciting and yet devoid of flying kicks, leaping punches, or gymnastic flourishes. Above the Law became the template for many of the films that came after, and fans grew to know what to expect from a Steven Seagal film, even down to the three-word title. The films, Hard to Kill (1990), Marked for Death (1990), and Out for Justice (1991) usually featured Seagal’s character taking on corruption and/or delivering vengeance in wickedly unique action set pieces that displayed his martial arts prowess. Fight scenes that featured Seagal vanquishing his attackers with quick and decisive moves, often sending them into objects like mirrors, walls, and contemporary furnishings, were what fans were coming to see. In the canon of great martial arts films, Above the Law holds a unique place and it helped to reinvigorate the genre. The film’s success seemed to usher in a new crop of martial artists-turned-actors, but most were not as successful as Seagal, who would eventually move on to direct as well as star in the cinematic environmental warning, On Deadly Ground in 1994. On a chilly evening in 1990, when I was living in Hollywood, California, and a lifetime away from the employ of a video store, I went to the historic Chinese Theatre, just around the corner from my miniature substandard apartment. Going to the theatre was an unusual extravagance, but I felt compelled to go. The new Steven Seagal movie was playing. I settled into my seat. When the lights dimmed, hoots and hollers erupted from the audience, as we watched Seagal slink down a rain-soaked alley. The title Hard to Kill splashed onto the screen.

In the summer of 2022, I was asked to write short bios of who I thought were the top 100 martial artists of all time. After jotting down a list of 100, I noticed 50+ of them had a historical tie to the Shaolin Temple. Since part my martial arts lifestyle is strongly attached to martial arts cinema and martial arts cinema history, the idea of Shaolin Studios was born. This is the 11th and final chapter of what has been a journey filled with extensive research and I appreciate the flexibility afforded to me by blackbeltmag.com. Shaolin became the first institutionalized martial art school in the world. It’s important to remind new generations that the fount of many a martial art movie arose from the fount of martial arts, the Shaolin Temple. Though the Shaolin suffered other major crises during each dynasty and the modern era, such as being wrongly implicated to be teaching boxers during the Boxer Rebellion; and that 90% of one temple was burned down by a traitorous Kuo Ming Tang general, such events have never made it to the silver screen. Yet a story about a child practicing martial arts who affected the history of Shaolin Temple in a way that no other has done before, I felt was worth writing about. The Last Kung Fu Emperor of China The Chinese people are made up of five races: Han (the Chinese), Man (Manchus), Mong (Mongolians), Hui (Muslims) and Tsang (Tibetans). When the Manchus took over China and established the Ching Dynasty, that made the Han and Manchus bitter enemies. In history, after the brutal 13-year reign of the Manchu Emperor Yong Zheng, known for razing and burning the Shaolin Temples and slaughtering many monks, his fourth son, Hong Li, became Emperor Chien Lung, the fifth emperor of the Ching Dynasty (fourth to rule over China) and he ruled China for 60 years (1736-1796). Due to his expertise in martial arts, Chien Lung was also known as the last kung fu emperor of China. Chien Lung’s contribution to martial arts film is enormous. He recognized what his father did to the Shaolin was tragic and wrong, and he took it upon himself to rebuild and revitalize the return of Shaolin and Shaolin martial arts. Chien Lung was also a Chinese Opera buff and after becoming emperor he eventually invited all the top opera troupes to perform in Beijing. After choosing what he considered to be the top performers from each troupe, he then commissioned the creation of a Beijing opera school, and those performers became the teachers. Who’d have thought that 170 years later Beijing opera performers would become the backbone for Hong Kong's amazing stuntmen that included many of the best fight choreographers in martial arts cinema like Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and the father of wire-fu Ching Siu-tung. In the 1970’s, Shaw Brothers made four films based on the life and times of Chien Lung, with Liu Yong starring in all four as Chien Lung. Liu was the first actor who received the brunt of Bruce Lee's first iconic and intensely furious, death blow punch seen in The Big Boss (1972). One of the famous legends of the last kung fu emperor Chien Lung was that he secretly visited the area of Chiang Nan in southern China six times dressed as a commoner because he wanted to blend in and learn about how his subjects felt about him. On an interesting quantum entanglement note, one of the greatest warrior Kings of England, King Richard I (aka Richard the Lion Hearted; 1157-1199), during his reign only spent six months on British soil and during those periods, Richard would don peasant clothes six times to walk among his subjects. One of Chien Lung’s trips is the focus of Adventures of Emperor Chien Lung (1977), where during this excursion Chien Lung wanted to understand the whole subculture of tea. Yet also in this film, we bear witness as to how Chien Lung learned to defend himself while growing up in the cold Mulan lands of Heilongjiang province in northern China and as a young teen saved his grandfather Emperor Kang Xi’s life from a ferocious black bear during a hunting trip. Though he had no direct impact on improving any specific Shaolin martial skills, Chien Lung helped maintain Shaolin’s popularity and cultural significance during the Ching dynasty as the temple and its martial arts continued to flourish during his reign. A Fatherless Impoverished Son Born 1963, impoverished as a child, father died when he was two, at age nine, Jet Li (Lee Lian-jei) began his martial arts flight and by 1982 he became one of the most important Shaolin martial artists since the Ten Tigers of Canton by instigating one of the largest revivals of Shaolin martial arts in history against overwhelming odds and at a critical time in China’s history. Jet Li is a descendant of a creed bent on the subterfuge of intellectuals and philosophers, a government that outlawed martial arts, and who zealously destroyed Shaolin Temples and executed Shaolin monks who refused to enter re‑education camps. Yet Li broke down these fabled walls of scourge to become Communist China's first actor to conquer the shores of Hollywood. He derisively accomplished this feat by excelling in the cultural contraband of martial arts, philosophy and cinema. Li was raised during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, which was a time when Shanghai movie star wannabe Jiang Qing (Madame Mao) was at the peak of her relentless, wholesale house cleaning of the arts. Li began practicing wushu as Madame Mao organized the dreaded "Gang of Four." Although terms like wushu and kung fu can be considered as synonyms for Chinese martial arts, the Chinese government reinstated wushu as a sport in the early 1950s, eradicating the combative and philosophical aspects of the arts. During wushu's auspicious beginning, movements were performed with hands held as tight fists, representative of the hammer striking out against the nail of capitalism. Charismatic and highly skilled, Jet's film career took off after he was discovered by director Chang Hsin-yen to star in The Shaolin Temple (1982), China's first kung fu film since the Communist takeover in 1949. Taking three years to film, the movie inspired millions to visit the real temple's remains forcing the paranoid government to warn the public that it was unnecessary for people in China to learn self-defense. Yet the public never stopped visiting and as the world became privy to wushu and Jet Li, global interest about Shaolin and wushu exploded. In Shaolin Temple , Jet plays Jue Yuan, one of a band of real 13 Shaolin monks that rescued future Tang Dynasty emperor Li Shi-min from his father's evil Sui Dynasty enemies. In recognition of the monks' bravery and martial skills, when Li ascended to the throne as Emperor Taizong (A.D. 626-649), the film and history explained that he granted extra land to the temple and decreed that a monk could eat meat and drink alcohol if he chose to. Though two non-related sequels were shot, Shaolin Temple led to the eventual resurgence and reopening of the Shaolin Temple doors, and most importantly the film’s underlying impact reinstated the cultural and historical recognition and significance of the Shaolin Temple in China, yet this time on a global level. In 1973, at age 16, my life’s goal was to go to Song Shan Shaolin and learn Chi Gong. The irony of life is that in 1980, I learned Chi Gong in the Song Shan area of Taipei, Taiwan. Far out.

ONE Championship brought an absolutely stacked card to Bangkok, Thailand, with ONE Friday Fights 22. The event featured two title tilts and a who’s who of Muay Thai. Lumpinee Boxing Stadium was deafening from start to finish for one of the year’s best martial arts cards. If you missed any of the action, here is your chance to catch up. This is your recap for ONE Friday Fights 22. Main Event: Arjan Bhullar vs. Anatoly Malykhin Main Event Arjan Bhullar vs. Anatoly Malykhin Malykhin Winner by TKO Anatoly Malykhin is now the undisputed ONE Heavyweight World Champion. And he accomplished the task in his typical fashion — utter dominance. Malykhin walked Bhullar down in each round. If Bhullar attempted to clinch, the Russian heavyweight simply pushed him away and went back to work. As “Sladkiy” attacked the body, he set up bigger shots to the head. In the third round, he began to overwhelm Bhullar. Finally, Malykhin was able to drag him to the canvas and pummeled him until the referee had seen enough. Malykhin now reigns as the undisputed ONE Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight World Champion and is unquestionably one of the best and most exciting martial artists on the planet. Main Event: Prajanchai PK Saenchai vs. Sam-A Gaiyanghadao Main Event Prajanchai PK Saenchai vs. Sam-A Gaiyanghadao Prajanchai Winner by Knockout Prajanchai PK Saenchai put a stamp on his rematch against Sam-A Gaiyanghadao with a brutal second-round KO to become the ONE Interim Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion. Prajanchai unseated Sam-A two years ago and once again asserted himself as the better man. After a knockdown, the Thai star saw his chance to finish his fellow countryman. But it did not come immediately. Prajanchai reset himself and slowed down to allow the finish to come, and it did. The deciding blow came while Prajanchai was throwing a flurry of strikes. As Sam-A tried to defend, a beautiful right elbow crashed into his face, putting him out for good. Prajanchai’s stellar performance put the gold back around his waist. Full Card Superlek Kiatmoo9 vs. Nabil Anane Superlek Winner by Knockout Seksan Or Kwanmuang vs. Nathan Bendon Seksan Winner by Unanimous Decision Muangthai PK Saenchai vs. Nico Carrillo Carrillo Winner by TKO Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong vs. Eddie Abasolo Sitthichai Winner by Unanimous Decision Rambolek Chor Ajalaboon vs. Fariyar Aminipour Aminipour Winner by Split Decision Gingsanglek Tor Laksong vs. Kongthoranee Sor Sommai Kongthoranee Winner by Knockout Jomhod Auto MuayThai vs. Akram Hamidi Hamidi Winner by TKO Thongpoon PK Saenchai vs. Yangdam Sor Tor Hiewbangsaen Thongpoon Winner by Split Decision Fan Rong vs. Shamil Erdogan Erdogan Winner by Knockout Superlek Kiatmoo9 displayed his excellence in a quick 2-minute victory over Nabil Anane. The long frame of Anane merely gave Superlek more targets to hit as he blasted the body and head. A pinpoint accurate shot to the body put Anane on the canvas, and he could not meet the count. After the match, Superlek called out ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Jonathan Haggerty. Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong looked outstanding in his three-round victory over Eddie Abasolo. The American was able to open a cut late against the Thai, but it only spurred the talented Thai on to rally. Abasolo’s toughness was displayed, but Sitthichai cruised to a unanimous decision win. Kongthoranee Sor Sommai weathered Gingsanglek Tor Laksong’s storm in the first round and closed the show in the second. The perfect finish came when Kongthoranee landed a perfect left hook during an exchange between the two warriors. The victory gave him the third win of four bouts between the two and another highlight for his reel. Thongpoon PK Saenchai and Yangdam Sor Tor Hiewbangsaen threw down for nine minutes in an absolute war. Thongpoon immediately charged his fellow countryman, and the two duked it out. That close-quarters action continued each second of the fight. In the end, Thongpoon’s power shots did enough to win a split decision.

Oftentimes in life, we come across people who call themselves specialists in certain areas of work, i.e. professionals, scientists or, simply, owners of certain knowledge and skills. But, after a certain amount of time, we gradually come to see that they are so-called self-proclaimed experts with very poor general knowledge and, usually, with not enough experience and sometimes even with a fake diploma or a diploma that was falsely obtained. Such situations can, unfortunately, be witnessed with martial arts masters. Such experts often praise themselves with their alleged knowledge, but when they are faced with a real professional master, their true lack of knowledge and incompetence comes to show. The problem lies mostly in their elementary ignorance, insufficient awareness about topics concerning martial arts, their poor and distorted way of performing certain martial arts techniques, insufficient acquaintance with scientific and expert literature, etc. The worst among them are those masters who are arrogant and young, having acquired some knowledge or even a diploma, but do not have the real amount of experience. The only ones who are worse than them are those who fake or buy their diplomas, i.e. they cannot back up their existence with any real effort, years of work, a book they have read, etc. Those who have never actually passed a professional exam and no one has ever made a real evaluation of their work and skills. Fake diplomas are a simptom of a serious illness in today's society, they are a reflection of a crisis in education as well as of all efforts to acquire it thanks to your own efforts and hard work. Those who have been given such fake diplomas and have obtained fake knowledge are, in reality, dilettantes, opposed to respectable martial arts teachers, masters, instructors or experts. We need to ask ourselves: Who gave a diploma to such a person? How is it possible that someone allowed such a person to teach martial arts and didn't notice his/her lack of knowledge and competence? Fake diplomas are a huge threat. Self-proclaimed and fake martial arts masters are an even bigger threat. Such persons are making big damage to martial arts and, thanks to their appearance, are destroying the reputation of other legitimate masters and professionals. Parole,parole, parole – Parole, soltanto parole Everyone knows that, if you wish to seek employment, you need to show your CV and credentials to your future employer. They will ask you about your education, professional diploma, i.e. if you have completed the necessary education for that position. If you meet their criteria, they will ask you about your former work experience. Then they will put you on probation in order to check if you have the necessary skills, experience and knowledge for the job. This is the same process that should be applied when questioning the competencies of a martial arts master. Unfortunately, it isn't so in most cases. When you ask some of them where and with which martial arts master have they learnt the necessary skills, you will always get similar answers. They will say that they learnt the techniques with one or two masters- instructors. They will usually mention some lesser known or entirely unknown martial arts instructors. This is where you start questioning their expertise. Moreover, if you ask them if they have published any books- they haven't. Have they perhaps published any scientific papers in journals? They haven't. Have they ever competed at a martial arts tournament? They haven't. Have they held any seminars, conferences, lectures, etc. They haven't. This is when your doubts about their competence and martial arts knowledge are justified. Still, these so-called masters continue to assure you that they are knowledgeable and competent. They continue to talk about their titles, skills, expertise. All in all, they talk a lot, but they don't have anything to cover the truthfulness of their words and stories. If you wish to invite them to a sparing duel in order to check their skills (which is entirely normal among martial arts masters), you will always get the same answer. If you invite them to a sparing, they will complain that they are too old for that (although they are 40, 45, 50 or 55 years old). Also, they will tell you that they have injured themselves in training yesterday and they are not able to accept it. And that's not all. They will oftentimes tell you that they need to have control over some very dangerous skills and techniques so it's not a good idea to accept the sparing invitation for your own safety. They could easily injure you or even kill you if they are not careful. In other words, they are refusing the sparing "allegedly” for of your own safety because you are not on their level. So what can you say to that? Such self-proclaimed masters often call themselves warriors, samurais, ninjas, shaolin monks, some ancient karate, kung fu, tae kwon do masters, etc. They give themselves all kinds of titles. They try to look dangerous and they constantly talk about being dressed in special clothes or about knowing special martial arts techniques. Still, if you ask them if and where they have gone through special or military training they won't have an answer. If you ask them whether they have been in any wars, they will say that they haven't. And still, they call themselves warriors or heroes. They call themselves "dangerous warriors”, but they won't (because they can't) go to sparing with young men that are 15, 16 or 17 years old because they would beat them up. So what can you say to such stories? Words, words, words. Words, just words. This is all these so-called masters can and know. They can talk a lot, invent stories, fantasize, lie. Words are cheap, so anyone can talk. Don't we live in a country where there is freedom of speech? Why are we surprised that such self-proclaimed master all that do is talk? Talking is easy and anyone can do it, but doing that what we are talking about is something else entirely. Words are just words, not actions. Real and truthful martial arts masters won't talk much- they will show their actions right away. This is the basic difference between a real and knowledgeable martial arts master in comparison to a fake and self-proclaimed "alleged” master. What is he a master of, exactly? You will sometimes read in certain martial arts magazines, on social media, on a seminar or in a conversation in one of the martial arts centers that such a self-proclaimed master is called a "fake” master. Telling or giving such names for this type of persons, saying that they are fake masters, impostors, liars or that they are unprofessional, cowards, etc. is not something that you will hear from real martial arts masters- experts. Why is that so? Every real master knows about the basic martial arts postulate and it is- respect. Because of this respect they do not want to make fun of, laugh at or insult anyone. And get this- these so-called masters know about that and use it to their own advantage. Respect! Respect needs to be earned. In Europe, if you wish to say that someone is a fake master, unprofessional, coward or that he talks too much, boasts and doesn't show any real actions, you would start to sing a well-known Italian ballad. It is a melody and lyrics that all European masters (as well as many other worldwide masters) know and understand- "Parole, parole, parole. Parole, soltanto parole.” Anyone can talk, but doing that what you are talking about is something that these persons can't do. This is the basic difference between a real and self-proclaimed martial arts master. World Champions and Fame Today when you talk to athletes who compete is some of the many martial arts disciplines, you can't but notice the fact that there is an extremely large number of world champions. There almost isn't a slightly better athlete that wasn't or isn't a world champion is a martial arts discipline. As it is widely known, there is a huge number of martial arts disciplines across the world. Athletes are divided according to the martial arts discipline, weight categories, sex and age. So, they are competing in many different disciplines and, as we all know, there are numerous world federations that exist. There are several world organizations (federations) in some martial arts sports such as boxing, kick boxing, karate, tae kwon do, jiu jitsu, wrestling, etc. This enormous number of different martial arts sports (according to their skills and different styles), as well as a large number of different disciplines consequently have produced a large number of world champions and winners. So, if an athlete cannot become a world champion in a certain federation, he just needs to change his weight category or discipline which he is competing in. If he still doesn't become a world champion after that, he simply needs to go to another bigger or smaller world federation of a certain martial arts sport. If this doesn't give him the wanted result, he just needs to gather a couple of like-minded individuals and form his own world federation, create a new discipline or category and he will become a world champion. And this is exactly what is happening. A world championship between certain federation is not a rarity anymore. In certain disciplines or weight categories there are only 2 or 3 athletes-competitors. Athletes from those federations only need to wait to become world champions in a certain discipline or weight category. As much as it may sound funny, a world championship where only 2 or 3 athletes are competing is a reality. The winner is proclaimed as the world champion, he gets a diploma, lifts the trophy, his picture is being taken and he becomes the new world champion with all the honors the title gives. We can find this odd, we can laugh or complain, but we still can't change the fact that this "athlete” has become one of many world champions. Such "champions” teach other athletes that same martial art later on. Yes, that happens, too. Why? Because they are "world champions”. They have the title and certain honors just like some other athletes who earned those same results with hard work and dedication. Many athletes who competed in the most popular world federations fought against the most famous fighters or appeared in a discipline where they truly had to show their skills and knowledge and who earned that title fairly. They are astonished by such practices, but they cannot change them. Why? The majority of such avid persons who call themselves "athletes” and world champions can make themselves believe that they earned such titles. This is far easier that actually deserving those honors in a larger and better-known federation by fighting and competing with the best athletes in the world. Such persons are, later on, hungry for attention, self-promotion and fame. So why wouldn't they want that? After all, they are winners, world champions. All of their family members, friends and neighbors are proud of them. They have the support of other similar "athletes” of that certain sport as well as certain members of their sports center. They become famous and children from sports centers are in awe of them. Maybe you won't believe it, but these fake champions even become future athletes' role models. They are recommended and accepted into that sport's Hall of Fame. You ask yourselves why. Well, just like famous athletes that are responsible for their martial arts' development and promotion which they gained by becoming world champions. You can wonder about it, you can laugh or disapprove, but they will be accepted into the Hall of Fame. Such persons want to become its members although they don't belong there. Today, every martial arts sport has its own Hall of Fame. Every country, city, magazine, organization, even every larger town has its own Hall of Fame. If they don't, they will try to form something similar to that. Human vanity is extremely big and many people wish to become famous just so they can boast themselves in from of others and show that they are somebody in the world of martial arts and sports. Sadly for them, they chose the wrong sport. In martial arts sports and disciplines hard work, order, discipline, bravery, boldness, skill and humbleness is appreciated. We all know what the term "bloody sport” means. And we certainly know who is the real martial arts winner. Who is the true world champion, and who isn't. Self-proclaimed martial arts masters are those who constantly talk about themselves, boast and make up all sorts of stories like they are trying to convince themselves. They wave at you with their recognitions, show diplomas that are beautifully designed, but that are not worth anything, they are just a piece of paper. They are simple fake diplomas (bought diplomas) or diplomas that aren't earned truthfully. Their words, diplomas and titles are not worth anything- there is no real knowledge, skill, experience, advanced technique, dangerous knowledge or techniques. Nothing. Just a lot of talk, made up stories and mostly cowardice. Winners that aren't really that, world champions that gained their titles in an entirely inappropriate way at some weird and laughable world championships. Such world champions, realistically speaking, wouldn't be able to make it to the top 10 best fighters in that sport. World champions that are waving with a weapon and performing some nonsensical katas, katas without the bunkai technique. World champions that are waving with a weapon and do not really know how to use it in self-defense. World champions that were the best at some ridiculous and oddly-organized world championship where a total of 2 or 3 athletes were planned to compete in a given category or discipline. Martial arts world champions that could easily be beaten up by a beginner, i.e. a person that never really practiced that martial art. And that is their reality, the truth. Their knowledge, skill and ability to defend themselves is at the lowest level. We can marvel at that, laugh or complain, but we can't change the fact that these self-proclaimed fake masters as well as fake "champions” exist among us in a community where people seriously practice martial arts. And as much as we wonder about that, you cannot change the fact that their number is increasing. Such persons are making a huge damage to martial arts and their appearance is destroying the reputation of other true masters and experts. And all of this would be really comical if it wasn't tragic. So, when you come across such persons, the only thing you can do is sing "Words, words, words. Words, only words.” Parole, parole, parole. Parole, soltanto parole.

Seven elements of teambuilding… Device of Judo (and all kind ) coaching. If you are satisfied about your results: develop. If you are not satisfied about your results: change! 1. Each team member should have the opportunity to have his or her view on; the targets/goals that have to be set, the role that each individual member has to perform, the methods that will be employed to reach the targets/goals and the expectations that the team members have of the team. This section is a brainstorming phase. Expressing the views of the group process may then lead to the formulation of group targets/goals and to understand how these targets/goals can be best achieved. Important is that the team gets confidence in the cooperation . Therefore the probability that the set target/goal will be reached will be larger. In this section we come to common targets/goals 2.Make clear what the individual skills of team members are and which tasks the individual team members aspire. The tasks of the team members are then matched and the team comes to collaboration and targeted teamwork. shared visions . 3. Individual and collective responsibility and accountability. In the interest of the team, team members are required to work utmost to reach the stated goals. Team members must seek to account for their individual actions, but they should also bear responsibility for the group results. 4. A team culture should arise. This includes the acceptance of leadership, developing a team identity, team spirit and team attitude. A positive team culture and cohesive group atmosphere . In order to promote culture, the team coach or manager should be aware of what goes on within the team. Setting up a participation council can be a good way to get informed. 5. Team identity is important in team building. Team identity can be built explicitly by involving team members in the group’s goals, formulating common ideals and open expressions of pride in their performances. 6. The promotion of open and honest communication. Good communication prevents problems, but it is also important in solving problems. Open and honest communication is based on trust, sincerity and mutual understanding . 7. Mutual help and social support. The willingness of teammates to provide each other, if necessary, with practical and emotional support has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the team as a whole. Partly for this reason it is good that team members know each other outside the functional atmosphere. These seven basic components of team building is an approach at different levels: ➢ Individual approach ➢ Group approach or interpersonal approach ➢ Task-oriented approach In the individual approach the team member is the central. In the group approach is the formation of the team central. The task-oriented approach, the primary efforts are focused on achieving goals. Willem Visser Executive coach, Strategic Adviser, International Lecturer, 8th Dan Judo IJF With gratitude to all my teachers, specialists, colleagues and especially all the judoka that I was allowed to guide and to coach. Sources and inspiring professionals: Van der Horst, Cobben, Abe, Saitoh, Yamashita, Uemura, Sugawara, Murata, Hosokawa, Komata, Takahashi, Nakamura, Kasuga, Kawashima, Kariya, Brousse, Besson, Rougé, Ruska, Geesink, de Cree, Barta, Vachun, Viser, Lascau, McConnell, Snijders, Sins, Hoogendijk, Boersma, Odinot, van Dijk, Klok, Agúndez, Landsberg, Covey, de Waal, DeCaluwe, Drucker, Franzen, Goldratt, Hammer, Kets de Vries, Kotler, Mastenbroek, Mintzberg, Peters, Porter, Quinn, ten Bos, Trompenaars, Vinke, Weggeman, Wissema and many others. I shared this news with the widow of Jeremy Glick and got this response... "Thank you for sharing this. Our family had heard a life well lived and certainly a man who shaped so many lives including Jeremy's starting as a young boy. Hope all is well, Lyz" Results - 2023 Junior Olympic National Championships Results - 2023 Junior Olympic National Championships usajudo.smoothcomp.com Results and medals for 2023 Junior Olympic National Championships Sensei Gary Goltz on Lifting in Judo Using a Tonfa as an Aid - 6-17-23 Sensei Gary Goltz demonstrates the proper way to use your arm in forward throws such as Tsuri Komi Goshi using a Tonfa to emphasize the proper gripping motion. New Video on Proper Lifting in Judo Using a Tonfa as an Aid Sensei Gary Goltz demonstrates the proper way to use your arm in forward throws such as Tsuri Komi Goshi using a Tonfa to emphasize the proper gripping motion. Calendar: June - 2023 25th Sunday - U.S. Adaptive Judo Championships , Riverside, CA July - 2023 16th Sunday - CA State Games , San Diego, CA August - 2023 5th Saturday - Beginner & Intermediate Tournamen t, Las Vegas, NV 6th Sunday - Nikkei Games Budo Tournament , Cypress, CA 23rd Saturday - Veterans Judo Open , Myrtle Beach, SC September - 2023 17th Sunday - Nevada State Judo Championship , Las Vegas, NV 24th Sunday - Nanka Fall Tournament , Westminster, CA October - 2023 1st Sunday - Capitol Open Judo Championships , Sacramento, CA 22nd Sunday - Fresno Invitational Tournament , Fresno, CA 29th Sunday - Fight for a Cure Women's Tournament & Clinic , Riverside, CA 29th Sunday - Hanabi Halloween Classic , Albany, CA November - 2023 1st Wednesday to 3rd Friday - IJF World Veterans Championships , Abu Dhabi, UAE 5th Sunday - Nanka Team Tournament , Westminster, CA 19th Sunday - Presidents Cup National Championships , Irving, TX December - 2023 8th Friday to 10th Sunday - Nanka Winter Nationals & Clinics , Azusa, CA April - 2024 7th Sunday - Nanka Spring Tournament , Westminster, CA May - 2024 5th Sunday - Nanka West Coast Invitational , Westminster, CA June - 2024 28th Friday to 30th Sunday - USJF & USJA Summer Nationals , Tacoma. WA September - 2024 29th Sunday - Nanka Fall Tournament , Westminster, CA October - 2024 20th Sunday - Nanka Team Tournament , Westminster, CA December - 2024 6th Friday to 8th Sunday - Nanka Winter Nationals & Clinics , Azusa, CA I’m always looking for new subjects to write about regarding judo as well as contributions from my readers. Please send them to gary@garygoltz.com , thanks.

In all my 50 years of watching martial arts movies, Fist of the Condor is the second film that reveals the real secret training method on screen of ching gong (in Condor , Defy Gravity skill ), undoubtedly influenced by Jimmy Wong Yu’s Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976). It is also the only film in the West and possibly the East that comes close to understanding one of the most important aspects of Chi (Qi) and how that affects one’s health and inner power. Beyond the film’s significant substance, collective exuberance and personal joy, there’s an exhilarating electric charge that quickens the pulse with a zealously renaissance sense of a terrifying and tantalizing suspenseful interpretation of one of martial arts most important tenets, in the East and West, “Who is the most dangerous opponent that you will ever face in life?” When you realize the metaphor is not too encrypted, you’ll find it mesmerizing when you consider the film arose from another legendary bird’s ashes of fiery discontent, on probably one the most emotionally draining, anger intensifying, population-splitting and country-dividing true global dangerous opponent the world has ever faced…COVID. After we shared stories about how Bruce Lee instantly gave both of our lives purpose and direction while watching our first Lee movie, the 8-year-old Zaror in the-mid 1980s with friends seeing Enter the Dragon on Chilean TV, I esoterically noted and asked that not only did Marko want to make Condor , yet maybe something else wanted him to make the movie too? The mindfully reflective Zaror shares, “Wow! That is a good question though. I believe this film is from the soul of my honest expression. It was during COVID, we’re in quarantine, everything closed, no movies, no connection, isolating myself at the beach with few folks around. Doing long meditations at beautiful sunrises and sunsets, I was trying to re-think my purpose and my life because we were facing the end of the world. “I thought, ‘If this it, how would I like people to remember me? If kids see me and see my last movie, what do I want that movie to be?’ I wanted to do a love letter to everything that inspired my life, being the martial artist that I am, the human being that I am. “I captured the cultures of the martial arts world and kung fu movies and brought them into our culture, our reality. I also had all these notes that I collected through my life on training systems, philosophy, nutrition that captured the Latino culture and gave them to the director. Merging them was the whole concept behind Fist of the Condor , honestly expressing myself, and wanting to create a Latin American kung fu film as an homage to everything that inspired me.” Prior to the fall of the Incas by Spanish conquistadors circa 1572, where in years past the Chilean Mapuche warriors halted the Inca invasion in Central Chile, Inca Rumi Maki masters hid a sacred manual containing the deadly secret Fist of the Condor . Flash forward to today-ish, the secret has fallen into evil hands (Zaror) leaving the manual’s only rightful guardian (Zaror) as an incomplete martial artist that has a weakness every vicious assassin bent on killing him know. These are the days of reckoning, there is no hiding place, the days of black and white, clarity and parity, evil and good, there are no half measures, no reprieve for the two warriors that will go hell for leather to kill each other. The Inca spirits are maybe the judges, jurors and executioners that will hand down a verdict of death and one spared. Who’s really in control, good, evil, the Condor, Inca spirits, the Condor Woman? It is like two boats on the edge of a water fall, paddling like nuts, jumping through hoops or oops!, not fully knowing what is safe or accidental, or if that has already happened or not. Only time, emotion and Chi may delineate the truth. Condor is an eclectic provider of more nods to many classic martial arts films than a Bruce Lee bobble-head doll. I’m actually nodding my head as I’m writing this. They’re subtle, blatant and secretive, where part of the fun is looking for these homages that are hidden in plain sight, I’ve already mentioned two. Few more clues: Duel to Death (1982), Billy Jack (1972), Carradine’s Kung Fu , a Lee film, 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978), The Brave Archer (1977) and many more. If anyone is familiar with Chinese wuxia films or has had the chance to read my blog about wuxia martial arts novels ( https://blackbeltmag.com/martial-arts-movies-wuxia ), the most obvious nod, which is the most logical, is the film’s title that is based on where the film is shot and honors the country’s national symbol, the Andes Condor in Chile. The film’s titillating title comes with a lovingly brotherly spiritual tribute to arguably the most popular wuxia novel in history, The Legend of the Condor Heroes (1957), by Louis Cha. For bird buffs. Although the novel’s title Condor Heroes refers to legendary condors twice as big as humans, the literal Chinese translation The Legend of the Bird of Prey Shooting Heroes , the bird is an eagle. Condors are New World vultures only found in parts of North America (California, Arizona) and South America (the Andes Mountains). Old World vultures are the vultures we are familiar with, whereas the cinereous and red-headed vultures, the two main species in China, are not condors. Yet in the West, the English word, Giant Condor is more attention grabbing than an eagle, certainly Cha and his publishers were aware of this. Marko’s Martial Journey: Bruce Lee to Mexico to Hollywood to Prodigal Son “After Enter the Dragon ,” Marko enthusiastically avers, “That changed my life forever, Lee didn’t live long (we both sigh), and I was just a little kid, but it was such a powerful moment, he showed me that my life was going to be connected with martial arts and it never stopped.” Due to the military regime prohibiting martial arts, his mother, Gina Aguad (first female black belt in Chile; played Condor Woman in Condor ), got him into a tae kwon do (TKD) school, yet he still wanted to learn kung fu. His city-wide search failed; he could only find a karate school. He shivered, “It was a big thing for me because in the Bruce lee film Fists of Fury , kung fu are the good guys, karate are the bad guys, and I’m like, ‘Aaaaah, nooo, I cannot do this.’ When I must throw my black pants aside, the Bruce Lee kung fu shoes, and white socks to having to wear a white gi with a belt…man, that was one of the hardest days of my life. I’m not kidding.” Yet a friend told him about karate master who was so amazing and after meeting him, Zaror agreed. So, he began learning Okinawan Kenshin karate noting, “He changed my attitude, it was very strong for me, everything changed. I just had to empty my mind and start over.” Eventually returning to TKD, the WFT system with the same TKD master, he once again, had to empty his mind and start over. It seemed with age, as young as he was, he was becoming wiser. The old master took Zaror aside as he fondly recalled, “He told me I was an amazing martial artist, ‘You could be very good at this, you have such ability, but I feel in this style you won’t reach your maximum potential. Try join the national TKD team.’ I did. I’ve never forgotten his words; they were powerful. (pause) Empty my mind and start from zero.” I wondered if things would have turned out differently if the wide-eyed wee lad Zaror who wanted to be like Bruce Lee, knew back then that Lee’s kicking skills were influenced by TKD. When he was 18 and due to being on the Chilean national TKD team and participating in competition, Zaror got the opportunity to fly to Mexico City where a new martial art life direction opened up…or did it? He hooked up with the former Chilean kickboxing champion Jose Luis Mosca and began kickboxing training with him. Then one day something caught his eye, a movie poster in the gym with Mosca in it, a hitman. “And that’s when my eyes went boom,” Zaror blurted. “I’m like, ‘You’re doing martial arts movies?’ Before seeing this, it was never my dream to be in movies. My brain clicked. I have to get to Hollywood (he snickers), it’s not far from here.” Mosca invited Zaror, to participate in one film, and then it happened, “That’s when everything started for me, this is what I wanted to do. Did five movies in Mexico that were low budget and made for the Latino communities that live in the U.S., near the border that don’t speak English.” He got a scholarship to attend Telivisa to train as an actor to be in Mexican soaps operas. His first bite of the apple was at hand. He was offered a job working in a soap opera, yet no fights, and they told him if someone slaps him, he cannot block it and kick them. He declined, realizing that he must stay honest to his journey and make it to LA, Hollywood, and start from zero. When Zaror arrived in LA, it was tough, finding a place to live wasn’t easy. To make ends meet and meat, he became a waiter, dishwasher and began teaching in a gym. Then, to keep the dream alive he started training at the LA Valley College amid the stunt community. He recalled, “I’d see these guys flying in the air. Training hard every day. Everyone started talking about this legend. One day he shows up at the gym and I asked, ‘Who’s he?,’ someone replied, ‘Oh, that’s Andy Cheng, Jackie Chan’s stuntman.’ He was nice to me. A year later he asked if I was interested in doubling the Rock in The Rundown (2003). He was my first big mentor in learning how to do a fight scene.” Zaror quite all his jobs only to find out that he didn’t have a work visa and that Andy had to find someone else. “I told Andy that I didn’t want to get him in trouble, yet he told me not to worry saying there is no one that can do what you do at your height, the flips, corkscrew kicks. Yet he still needed to run auditions. Three months went by, and I thought no way I’m getting this job . Then I got the job, Andy got me the job. He became like my older brother that I had in the U.S. He fought for me, got me the visa and the opportunity to be in the U.S.” And that’s when Zaror met famous stuntman JJ Perry who was doubling for Sean William Scott and together they did the excitingly dangerous and insane tumbling down the mountain stunts. “Yet I still wanted to do fights,” Zaror affirmed. “The stunt was dangerous, and I just didn’t want to do tumbling, crashing cars, guns, horses, motorcycles. Being a stuntman is an honorable profession, yet I still wanted to follow my dream and honestly express myself as a martial artist. This was a second red apple, the opportunity for another incredible career, to be a stuntman.” He declined the offer and returned to Chile, not distraught, yet hopeful, adding, “With that money, I put together all that I learned, what I did with Andy Cheng, to create my own movies and that’s how we created Kiltro (2006), the first Latin American martial arts movie in Chile.” Condor Combat In the same wuxia martial arts novel article mentioned earlier, I also detail the history and importance of the worlds of Jiang Hu and Wu Lin created for wuxia novels. Jiang Hu is an alternative society made up of beggars, martial art heroes and villains, and outcasts who coexisted with normal society yet lived by their own laws, morality codes and systems of brotherhood. Wu Lin is a subworld of Jiang Hu for martial artists and swordsmen only. Condor intelligently weaves the blueprints of these worlds that were so vividly revealed in many Shaw Brothers films of the 1970s where age old storylines of whoever owned the secret weapon or kung fu manual would be the head of Jiang Hu, right down to where the villain and hero agreed to fight at a specific time and place and were bound by the rules to fight no matter what. Director Chu Yuen’s film were popular because he was known for having many short fights evenly spaced apart to create the illusion of lots of kung fu action. Director Ernesto Diaz either knowingly or unwittingly, by dissecting the script into nine chapters with a fight, training sequence and/or a bit of both within each chapter, to where sometimes they would meld into the next chapter’s angst of action. He created a Chu-ish flavor within a distinctive Chilean menu. Parts of the fight choreography include old style editing cuts and fight postures used in early 1970s Hong Kong/Taiwanese wuxia films. Overdone snapping stop shots of a kick, block, posture or a panning flying punch were tricks of the trade back then that made actors look like they had Lee speed. Hats off to Zaror, for creating what could be construed as a condor kung fu style if the condor was a bird of prey. Zaror’s hands don’t copy anything white crane-ish. His low looming stances clearly show his straight spreading fingers bending up like when a condor glides through the air with its long wing-tip feathers arching up so the condor can maintain lift while in flight. Another condor skill is when Zaror is lifting and pushing heavy objects onto to the ground as if it was a wing unfolding its powerful wing muscle pushing out an unwanted condor attacking baby condors in its nest. The training Defy Gravity skill sequences are uniquely taught by the Condor Woman in a way that creates hyper concern to the hero where his growing doom is as nervy as surgery. He’s hurdling toward the desperate, at a time when he needs a calm head and a steely resolve to face the prevailing pressure of the world’s most psychopathic assassin sent to unmind and unwind the hero’s psyche. Enter a zealously potent fight with a twisted mischievous ambience that features two animal styles, one surreal, one funereal, where each unrelenting combatant will be bruised, bemused, to where heightened devotion to emotion is but a flicker of light created by Zaror. It makes sense that in this new-fangled Chilean world of Jiang Hu that the finale fight, ending Part 1 of Fist of the Condor pits the psychotic Kalari (Eyal Meyer) spotlighting the ancient Indian martial art of Kalaripayattu that is rarely seen in Western movies. It’s refreshing to witness this multi-animal style that many will find it unfamiliarly fresh yet cool to observe. The ground fighting is most grand and so entertaining as these crouching low to the ground fighters, looking like ferocious, body-twisting mongooses, jump over and under each other with great camera choreography beautifully capturing each movement. A bright barn light starts to dim and flicker as if the light is losing voltage. The light goes out, it’s toss in the towel time for the hero. What’s going on is one the major points that Zaror is trying to get across. He explained, “Voltage is the Chi, our whole system works with the Chi, Chi is our inner energy, inner power, and Chi gets affected in different ways. There are lot of ways to build it up or ways to lose it, and emotion is one of them and that’s what we talk about this movie.” I close my asking every martial artist the same final question, how has martial arts influenced you as person and filmmaker. After a long-drawn breath, Marko averred, “Martial arts showed me my life purpose. It didn’t influence me, it made me who I am today, in every realm, dimension. The way I approach my work and all my relationships, are based on the spirit of martial arts.”

Nothing is more important than the breath. And while it is an involuntary function, it is also one that can be manipulated and used to enhance meditation, martial arts, and more. Whether using the breath for additional power when striking, for a more centered relaxed state when meditating, or even to project your voice to the back of the auditorium, breath is important. The Breath Breathing exercises and techniques can be used to develop better use of the breath, but I think it is crucial not to make things complicated. I’ve been teaching a class on this subject for years now, and I am always amazed at how technical such a primal and fundamental function can become. People often come to the class having had some prior experience working with their breath and usually ask about “the right way” to breathe, such as, “Should I do alternate nostril breathing?” While I understand the different methods have their various purposes, I think a basic practice that unites your body, breath, and mind has the most beneficial outcome. I don’t believe that there is any need for any legalistic adherence to particular dogmas either. Do what works, and I’ve found that the simplest is best. Anxiety and Stress Relief Almost none of the people that come to my breath class are martial artists looking for more power, or musicians looking to set their inner muse free. Most of my students come looking for solutions or methods to alleviate the effects of anxiety and stress. In the past, it was a small percentage of the students, and now it is fast becoming the majority. If I was a betting man, I would bet that many people are reading this piece right now for that very reason. If so, give the following exercise a try. Abdominal breathing, also called diaphragmatic breathing, is a technique I teach, and it is easy to learn. How do you do it? Here are the steps. Lay down on the floor, and place a book, or similar object, on your abdomen. If you don’t have a book, you can use your hands (one on top of the other). Inhale and push your stomach up. Exhale and let your stomach fall. The object (or hands) will “ride” your abdomen as it rises and falls with your breath. Count from 1 to 5 for your inhale and 1 to 5 for your exhale. Strive to keep both the inhale and exhale the same duration. After you do the exercise for a five-count, you can add more numbers. In my class, I like to take the count up to 7 and then 9, which almost always elicits an audible gasp from the students. Take it slow, and do several repetitions. You should feel that you’re breathing deeper and feel your abdomen expand, rather than your chest, as you breathe. Once learned, you don’t need to repeat the process above unless you think you need to reinforce the method. It should be like riding a bike. Another version of the same exercise can be done standing. Do everything the same as above, but instead of laying down, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and place your hands just below your navel. The process is pretty easy, and one just has to remember that whether you do either of the techniques above, the goal is to focus on your breath and to breathe slowly and deeply. After doing a repetition of about ten breaths, one will usually experience a calmer state. While an exercise can’t eliminate anxiety or stress, it may help in coping with their effects. Over time, and with the incorporation of other strategies, it may be possible to lessen their impact both in terms of severity and duration. Give it a try. Martial Arts Breath control and abdominal breathing have always been stressed in all of my martial arts studies. The kiai is probably the most well-known technique for using the breath in martial arts, but it is not the only method. In the Chinese martial arts that I have studied, an exhale at the moment of striking was taught. In judo, deep breathing, whether standing searching for a throw, or on the ground grappling, was stressed to keep from gassing out. While I was always told to “Breathe from my diaphragm,” I was never instructed how to do it. Teaching the method was never part of the curriculum. The technique that I provided above was one I learned when I studied voice. It’s not an issue now, since I know how to do it, but it was always incredibly frustrating in my lessons to be admonished to breathe through my diaphragm, and not shown how. It was like being told to punch, but not instructed how to make a fist. The best time to teach breathing is in the beginning when students are learning stances, falls (Ukemi), proper bone alignment, etc. Proper breathing will improve a student’s technique, and help them with other related practices such as meditation. Calm Focus The breath, when incorporated with a simple and deliberate task, such as counting, can be very calming and centering. When I am searching for a state of calm focus, I sit and breathe, as described previously, often for a count of ten breaths, thinking only of the number and the act of breathing. I have found that it helps me to feel present, in the moment, and in a better state of mind to deal with whatever the day is throwing at me. If you want to start a daily practice but think that you don’t have the time, note, it is not a half-hour or an hour, it is ten breaths. You can always do more, but I would start with ten. As with everything I have ever learned, how often you do something is more important than how long. A short, but consistent, practice each day is a good start. Breathing is something we are all doing all the time, and yet using it for the improvement and enhancement of our lives often seems elusive. It doesn’t need to be. Start now. Review the exercise above, and breathe in, breathe out. Repeat.

Black Belt Magazine has released their final rankings update before the U.S. Open ISKA World Martial Arts Championships, just over one week away at the time of this article. As noted in the introductory header at the top of the rankings, the committee aims to use results as an objective measure but there will always be some subjectivity as they use the “eye test” to make difficult decisions between athletes. This article is to summarize some of the key updates and provide transparency about some of those tough decisions. Let’s begin with point fighting, as the recent Battle of Atlanta has proven that they are one of the top sparring tournaments in North America. Bailey Murphy took home lightweight grand champion honors at both the Quebec Open and the Battle of Atlanta since the last rankings update, and he sits firmly at number one. His challenger in both of those lightweight finals? Tyson Wray, who has cemented himself at number two. As for the heavyweights, Avery Plowden clings to the number one spot despite not competing at either of these events following an injury at the Ocean State Grand Nationals. Devon Hopper soared his way into the two-spot with an impressive march to the heavyweight grand championship in Atlanta. Closely behind him is Kevin Walker, the heavyweight grands winner from the Quebec Open. In men’s open weight, Bailey Murphy holds the top spot for his win in Quebec and his collection of accomplishments in that division this year. However, a serious threat to his #1 position is sitting at number two as Tyreeke Saint defeated Murphy in the open weight finals at the Battle of Atlanta. Another open weight win for Saint could catapult him to the top. Coming in at 3 is a semifinalist in open weight at the Battle of Atlanta and the WAKO open weight winner from the Quebec Open, Devon Hopper. The lady warriors deserve some major respect because their division made for one of the toughest decisions in the entire sport. Katarina Herman remains in the leading position as the defending Warrior Cup champion with additional big wins at the Compete Internationals and Ocean State Grand Nationals. Right behind her are three women that head have a head-to-head win against Herman in the last two events. Jimena Janeiro defeated Herman in the open weight division at the Battle of Atlanta, which combined with the rest of her résumé earns the second spot. Corina Balan won the overall grand championship in Atlanta to earn the third spot, and the fourth spot belongs to Elyse Gorrell who also defeated Herman for the overall grand championship in Quebec. It is certain that the results at the U.S. Open will have a significant impact on how the women’s point sparring rankings evolve. Shifting to adult forms and weapons, we’ll keep talking about the phenomenal females dominating the sport right now. Haley Glass made her return to the sport with a divisional win in traditional bladed weapons and overall grand championships with CMX forms and weapons routines that helped her retain the number one ranking for all three of those disciplines. Gabrielle Rudolph remains the top-ranked women’s traditional forms competitor as the winner of Korean Forms, Japanese/Okinawan forms, and Traditional Challenge at the Battle of Atlanta. Melissa Baillargeon, who used her traditional kata to claim an overall in Quebec, jumps to the number two spot after previously being unranked due to inactivity. In the men’s divisions, Esteban Tremblay won overall grand championships in CMX forms and weapons at the Battle of Atlanta to confirm his first-place ranking in both divisions. A new face appears in the #5 spot for CMX weapons in Brennan Green, who has a couple of finals appearances under his belt including the recent Quebec Open. In traditional weapons, the juggernaut Jake Presley is out with a broken fibula and will be unranked until he is healed and back in action. Esteban Tremblay has the most overall grands in this category aside from Presley and is the new #1. He is followed by Battle of Atlanta overall grand champ Alec Jahanvash. Dominic Lancaster used his eku kata to leap into the rankings by defeated a couple of highly-ranked opponents, now sitting at number four. Traditional forms saw Mason Stowell win grands at both the Quebec Open and Battle of Atlanta, placing him ahead of Caio DaSilva who has been inactive since the Ocean State Grand Nationals. The continued dominance of Jeff Doss in Korean forms has helped him climb the rankings a bit to the number three spot. The rest of the adult divisions are maintained by the stellar seniors that continue to impress the sport karate world. Back-to-back weapons grand by Eric Tremblay have earned him the number one spot in that division, while Kevin Kowalczik’s forms grand at the Battle of Atlanta earns him top honors for that category. He is trailed by Andrew Cabilan who won the forms title at the Quebec Open, and number three is occupied by Samuel Diaz III for his prior accomplishments this season. Santiago Aversso secured another senior sparring win at the Battle of Atlanta and is ranked as the top dog, trailed by Quebec Open grand champion Jonathan Doucet. As for the women, Casey Marks-Nash was back in action at the Quebec Open and confirmed her top rank with fantastic performances. Morgan Plowden clings to the one spot in sparring much like her younger brother, with Mouse Millner coming in hot at number two after winning the grand championship at the Battle of Atlanta. Quebec Open champ Michelle Jones sits at number three. Moving down the age bracket to the 14-17 junior categories, the CMX weapons division saw the return of Mason Bumba as he won a couple of divisions in Atlanta to return to the rankings in the 2 slot. Phillip Brumme was victorious in Atlanta as the overall grand champion as reigns at number one. His accomplishments in forms for the season helped him retain the top spot in CMX forms as well, but Atlanta’s divisional grand champ Colin OBrien and multi-division winner Joe Troia are in pursuit at two and three. Matthew Gruitia soars to the top spot in traditional forms and the overall grand champion in Atlanta. Sterling Keefe has been the most consistent in traditional weapons for the season, but he is trailed closely by Nolan Grunwald who took his talents to the stage in Atlanta. Notably, Shane Billow used to be present in all of these divisions but has been removed from the rankings for the time being since he has aged out of the division. The teenage ladies are headlined by Sofia Rodriguez Florez staying on top of both traditional categories. Warrior Cup Champion Averi Presley took the divisional grand in Atlanta to remain atop CMX forms. New faces in that division include Jessica Albu, the divisional grand champion from the Quebec Open, and Neve Harvey who was brought to the committee’s attention as the WAKO national champion and Dutch Open Champion in 2023 for this division. The girls’ CMX weapons division is still very closely contested with multiple athletes having one divisional grand championship on the season. Samantha Mitling taking her CMX bo form to the overall grand in Quebec is the leader, with Averi Presley winning the divisional grand but coming up short of the overall in Atlanta to be placed at number two. Also of note, the junior fighters for both boys and girls are still featured in the rankings by highlighting the grand champions and open weight winners from the most recent event, in this case the Battle of Atlanta. On to the 13 & under youth divisions, Judah Sagawa maintains his top ranks in CMX forms and weapons for his accomplishments this season including double overall grands in Quebec and a forms overall grand at the Battle of Atlanta. Michael Molina won the divisional grand championships for traditional and CMX weapons in Atlanta, close behind Sagawa in CMX and now holding the top honors in traditional. Henry Hawkinson was the traditional kata competitor in the finals at the Battle of Atlanta, continuing his strong season and moving up to number one. As for the girls, Olivia Cano returned to the top spot in CMX weapons for winning the divisional grand at Battle of Atlanta, while Adelynn Lau won the overall at that event with her traditional double sword form and remains the number won traditional weapons competitor. Savannah Agosto and Amanda Duarte met in the finals for forms at both the Quebec Open and Battle of Atlanta, and they hold the top spots in CMX and traditional forms respectively. Closing these highlights out with the team events, team demonstration saw the return of Team Competitive Edge at the Battle of Atlanta as they took home the title. Team Freestyle has been the consistent team all year and holds the number one spot, with Competitive Edge now sliding into number two. Team Infinity is just behind them after being the runner-up in Atlanta. The synchronized forms category has a new number one as Colin OBrien and Joe Troia of Team AKA secured a big win at the Battle of Atlanta. U.S. Open will present an opportunity for DG & Pia of Team Infinity or Ben Jones and Dawson Holt of Team Paul Mitchell to claim the number one spot again (as they have each held it in the past), or for Team AKA to prove they can repeat their success from Atlanta. Synchronized weapons has no surprise at number one as Ben Jones and Esteban Tremblay of JPM have been taking that division home all year. Team Leclerc had a good showing in Atlanta to earn the second position, and the “eye test” grants the newly-formed duo of Haley Glass and Alex Mancillas for JPM the third place despite a drop in Atlanta. Last, but certainly not least, is the wildness that exists in men’s team sparring. Team Straight Up won the Quebec Open then the Battle of Atlanta in a thriller over Top Ten Team USA, so Joe Greenhalgh’s squad sits atop the list with Bob Leiker’s team threatening at number two. Team DMND G3 was the runner-up in Canada and sits at three, with strong teams like Team Dojo Elite and Team Legend rounding out the top five.

This August marks the 50th anniversary of the release of Bruce Lee's final, completed film, "Enter the Dragon," and the internationally renowned Tribeca Film Festival is acknowledging the occasion with a special Saturday night screening. The festival, which has already premiered the documentary film, "Enter the Clones of Bruce," about Lee's many cinematic imitators, will feature a panel discussion following the showing of "Enter the Dragon." On hand to talk about Lee and his cinematic masterpiece will be martial arts movie legend Angela Mao, who appeared in the film as Lee's sister, and Enter the Dragon producer Andre Morgan. There will also be a choreography demonstration by Anderson's Martial Arts Stunt Team. The event is set for 8:30 pm on Saturday at the SVA Theatre in Manhattan.

Saturday, June 17, will see a seminar held in the memory of the late karate legend and Black Belt hall of famer Fumio Demura at the headquarters dojo of his Genbu-Kai organization in Santa Ana, Calif. Demura, who passed away in April at the age of 84, will be honored with classes held by a group of renowned karateka. Tomohiro Arashiro, the senior representative of the Okinawan ryuei-ryu style in the Americas, will give a class on the anan dai kata. Takafumi Hamabata, who founded the Japanese Karate Masters Association of North America or Hokubei Karate-do Shihan-kai with Demura and a host of other well known masters, will present a class in goju karate fundamentals and the kururunfa kata. And Brian Hilliard, a student of Demura's who was a member of the U.S. national karate team and three-time national champion, will offer a class in kumite. For those who can't attend in person, the seminar will be available online via Zoom for $25.