Author Archives: Bill Viola

Kumite Classic

kumite classic

Bill Viola is the promoter and director of the Kumite Classic, Pittsburgh PA.  The Kumite Classic is the mecca of sport martial arts, fitness and karate for the past two decades in Western PA.  Pittsburgh “City of Champions” is home of the prestigious Kumite Classic, a brand that Der er ingen tvivl om, at blackjack er et af de allermest kendte dkonlinecasinos.com spil. is synonymous with athletic excellence recently honored with the Pittsburgh M.V.P. Award at the Willie Stargell Memorial Banquet. Over the past thirty years legends such as casino Michael Jordan and online casino Muhammad Ali have attended the banquet.

The Kumite Classic was home to the first BJJ Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament, championship / competition in the history of Pittsburgh.  The event continues to the be the most established and longest running grappling event in Pittsburgh.    The Kumite Classic is the leading promoter of karate tournaments, martial arts championships and all combat sports competitions in the Pittsburgh area.

A Spooktacular Day

Congrats for winning the karate competition and the costume contest!  Sara Russell won 1st place in sparring and won the most “Spooktacular Costume” award.

The 2011 Spooktacular Martial Arts Championship was held October 22nd, in Millersburg, Ohio. The karate event was sanctioned by the National Black Belt League…showcasing competitors from across the East Coast, including Team Kumite who represents the Pittsburgh area.

Representing the Allegheny Shotokan Karate School and Team Kumite of North Huntingdon were Hope Chase (1st place 11-12 year old Jr. Black Belt)  Bess Chase (1st place 9-10 year old Jr. Black Belt) Bridgit Chase (1st Place 13-14 year old Jr. Black Belt)  Luke Lokay (1st place 8-9 year old novice)  Nick Kosan (3rd place 12-13 year old advanced boys), Cameron Klos (2nd As best online casino the UK’s number 1 credit repair companies reference agency ?, you can be confident of accurate, useful information when you choose the Experian CreditExpert service. place 10-11 year old advanced boys), Sara Russell (1st place 10-11 year old girls),  Gabriel Anthony (1st place 8-9 year old novice), Colton Wobrak 4th place six & under beginners), Liz Leaseburg (2nd Place 11-12 girls novice).

The Spooktacular was casino online the last opportunity for competitors to gain a seed into the 2011 Sport Karate Nain yleisarvosana voisi sanoa, etta kaikki netin pelivalmistajat (NetEnt, Microgaming, CMTX, Evolution Gaming ja Playtech) valmistavat sangen tasalaatuisia rulettipeleja . World Games. Norwin Senior, Dominic Leader, is the defending 2010 World Champion for the continuous contact and the only World Champion from Western Pennsylvania last year.  Earning acceptance to compete and join Leader at the World Games are Bess, Hope, and Bridgit Chase.

The team will complete it’s season by attending the annual Laurel State Karate Championships held December 10th at the White Oak Athletic Association. The event, sanctioned by the Pennsylvania Karate Rating Association, is recognized as the oldest running karate championship in the Central Westmoreland area, showcasing the region’s top talent for over 30 years.

Congrats Dominic Leader

Team Kumite Member Dominic Leader was recently crowned 2011 Norwin Homecoming King. Congrats.

Only a handful of Western Pennsylvania athletes have claimed a sport karate world title.

Norwin junior Dominic Leader not only claimed his first world title, but he did so with an undefeated record.

Leader won every match at every competition for the 2010 season, cumulating with a sweep of his division at the 2010 World Games in Sacramento, Calif., over the winter break.

The games are the equivalent to the Super Bowl for martial arts, with more than 2,000 world-class athletes from across North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Europe battling for world titles.

Leader has excelled over the past few seasons in a competitive division, but 2010 was the year he made history. The 165-pound weight class continuous sparring championship is a modified version of kickboxing that requires an extreme amount of endurance casino online and physical toughness.

Leader defeated contenders from Canada, Mexico and U.S. leading up to his World Games bouts.  In the semifinals, he faced the highly favored Juan Pablo Santiago of Guatemala, the reigning world champion.

In 2009, Leader lost to Santiago in the finals. Four inches taller and visibly stronger, Leader overwhelmed his rival and unleashed an offensive attack to win by a unanimous decision and advance to the double-elimination finals.

During the finals, he faced Curtis Fresh of El Paso, Texas.  After four rounds, Leader was named world champion and brought home Pittsburgh”s only world title in 2010.

“I couldn”t have done it without my training partner and older brother, Billy,” the champion said.

Billy Leader also earned a spot in the World Games finals, only to be hampered by injuries that have plagued him throughout the season. He was not medically cleared to finish the final fight and was awarded second place in the 143-pound weight class.

The Leader brothers are coached by Bill Viola, head instructor at Allegheny Shotokan Karate and Norwin Ninjas in North Huntingdon.

Dominic Leader joins an exclusive list of NBL Karate World Champions from Pittsburgh that includes Ali Viola, Jose Rivera and Terrence Tubio.

All of the former champions are teammates of Leader, making Team Kumite the only NBL World Champions in the region”s history.

Mon Valley Champs

The 2011 Mon Valley Open Martial Arts Championships was held September 17th at the Joe Montana Gymnasium, Charleroi, PA.  The karate event was sanctioned by the Professional Karate Commission and showcased competitors from the tri-state area.

Representing the Allegheny Shotokan Karate School of North Huntingdon were Nick Kosan (1st place 12-13 year old advanced boys), Cameron Klos (1st place 10-11 year old advanced boys), Sara Russell (1st place 10-11 year old girls), Rachael Bartuska (1st place 12-13 advanced girls), Gabriel Anthony (1st place 8-9 year old advanced), Luke Lokay (2nd place 8-9 year old advanced), Liz Leaseburg (1st Place 11-12 girls novice).  The team will travel to Millersburg, Ohio next month to compete in the National Black Belt League’s Spooktacular Marital Arts Championship.  The NBL sponsors the Sport Karate World Games held in Sacramento California.