History Team Kumite

組 – literally means “Grappling”  手 – literally means “Hand”

組手 The Japanese ideograms translate as “grappling hands” aka fist fighting.

In 1998 Sensei Bill Viola Jr. was the ranked competitor #1 in 18-34 male black belt category under the auspicious of USA Karate Federation.  He was named an All-American athlete and member of US Team.  Leading up to the 1999 Nationals, he suffered a fractured neck as the result of an automobile accident.  Dominos fell as shortly after he required esophagus surgery.  The Nissen fundoplication compounded with the cervical injury, ended his competitive career.  He was noted as one of the most successful sport karate competitors of his era, consistently winning both traditional USA Karate and open championships. The diagnosis forced retirement and upended his “way of life.”  Read more

One door closes another door open.

As Sensei Bill sought new avenues to pursue his passion, he outlined a plan to disrupt the current cadre of promoters and leaders in the sport martial arts industry.  Competition had been embedded in his DNA, and although he couldn’t step on the tatami as an athlete, he was determined to revolutionize the landscape of what he called, “complacent leagues.”  He was broken physically but inspired mentally.  The summer of 1999 was the genesis of the KUMITE brand:  Kumite International, Kumite Classic, and Team Kumite.

Why Kumite? In his own words:

“I was the defending Kumite champion [-60 KG division] at the USAKF nationals prior to my accident. I loved fighting, it was my favorite part of the sport. I was always ‘fighting’ for something.  When I was a kid, I was always the smallest.  When I was in school, I had to work twice as hard to get A’s.  Nothing came easy, so kumite was a battle cry.  After my neck injury I couldn’t fight anymore, so I put all my energy into creating something new and exciting.   I was ‘fighting’ for the recognition of up-and-coming champions.  There weren’t any scholarships or real opportunities for the next generation.   The word KUMITE just felt right.”   Now, life imitating art, it was time to fight!”

Kumite Classic Entertainment (est. 1999): Kumite Classic Entertainment is a full scale production company that is best known for its self-titled “Kumite Classic” tournament and expo.  The Kumite Classic is the crown jewel of the Kumite brand, recognized as the mecca for martial arts in Pittsburgh.  The annual martial arts and fitness convention grew into the largest and most prestigious event of its kind with an annual draw of 15,000 spectators and competitors over Memorial Day weekend at the Monroeville Convention Center. Professional athletes, Olympians, and celebrities flocked to Western Pennsylvania for a fusion of sport and entertainment which included over 15 different combat sports and fitness events under one roof.

Team Kumite: (est. 2001) Sensei Bill Viola Jr. founded the all-star sport karate team to promote the newly minted scholarship foundation and bring back the storied tradition of the X-Caliber karate team.  The team would single-handedly put Pittsburgh back on the sport karate map winning an unprecedented amount of world titles. Team Kumite was active as a dojo team as early as 1999, but opened the doors with official team tryouts in 2002.

Karate instructor working hard to promote foundation

DUSTIN DOPIRAK | Sunday, May 13, 2002 12:00 a.m.

Bill Viola Jr. had spent countless hours on the phone, on airplanes and in different cities trying to get his organization, Kumite International, going. He had put everything, even a budding career in Hollywood, on hold.

But he remembered why he was doing it the first time he saw the fruits of his labor.

Kumite International is a non-profit organization that sanctions events in sport karate, a sport which allows martial artists of every discipline to compete against one another with a unified point scale. Throughout the year, competitiors accumulate points for winning matches at tournaments. The organization ended its third year of existence with the Kumite Classic April 27 at Hempfield Area High School.

This year’s event marked the first time Viola, 25, was able to award scholarships to those who had earned the most points in each division. It made his organization the first non-profit organization to award scholarships to sport karate athletes.

“It was just a tremendous feeling of gratification,” Viola said. “It was great to know that all of that work we put in allowed them to receive something they truly deserved. I know how much they put into this sport and how little they get for it. Karate athletes face a lot of obstacles that a lot of people don’t know about.”

Viola knows as well as anyone. He began his competitive martial arts career when he was 3 years old, learning karate at his father’s school, the Allegheny Shotokan Karate School in North Huntingdon Township. He won nine state titles, six national championships and one world title in 1998. He already owned four national titles by the time he graduated from Hempfield Area in 1995, but unlike conventional athletes, his successes were rewarded only with trophies.

“I was about as good as there was in the sport of karate, and there was no money there at all for college,” Viola said. “There was a lot for football and basketball and sports like that. Even guys that were mediocre could get a scholarship.”

He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, and continued to practice karate while he was in school. However, his career ended when he suffered a broken neck in a car accident in 1999. While recovering, he decided to find another way to contribute to karate, and that was where Kumite International found its beginnings.

After leaving the hospital, Viola contacted James Cvetic, president of the Western Pennsylvania chapter of the Police Athletic League, whom Viola had known since his youth. Cvetic put Viola in touch with C. James Parks of the law firm of Eckert, Seamans, Cherin and Mellot, who made the foundation a legal entity.

Viola went on the road to promote the foundation and took it from there. In its second year, Kumite-sanctioned events dotted the East Coast. There are sanctioned tournaments throughout the United States and in Canada and Italy. Last season, there were approximately 18 sanctioned events throughout the entire season. Viola already has scheduled 15 through November.

“Kids his age usually don’t know what they want to do,” Viola’s father said. “But he’s always been very goal-oriented, and you see that in the way he works with this. It’s become like a job to him, and its difficult to have a job like this to do, and he’s done a great job with it.”

The foundation brings in money through selling memberships and through various other fund raisers.This year, it awarded $10,000 in scholarship money to the overall national point champions in novice and advanced divisions in three age groups: 11-and-younger, 12-18, and adult. There are also scholarships for junior black belts (17-and-younger), adult black belts and female black belts.

Next year, Viola said he plans to allocate an additional $10,000 in scholarship money for members who show leadership. High school seniors and college students who intend to teach martial arts also will be able to apply for scholarships.

The foundation has allowed Viola to help a few people that have followed his path, including Angelo Marcile, one of Viola’s best friends and toughest karate rivals.

Marcile, 30, is a blackbelt who has won more than 30 national and state titles in his continuing career. He didn’t have enough money to go to college when he graduated but remained dedicated to the idea while working as a free lance subcontractor and teaching karate at night.

He is enrolled at Point Park College, where he will begin classes after he finishes a course at Community College of Allegheny County to get his grades up. He expects the scholarship he won to pay for his books.

“He told me he was thinking about doing this, and I told him I would help him out anyway I could,” Marcile said of Viola. “He’s really put his heart and soul into this and I’m very thankful for what he’s done.”