Martial arts school founders » Page 2

Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born Kanji Inoki (Japanese: Japanese: 猪木寛至, Hepburn: Inoki Kanji); February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He is best known by the ring name Antonio Inoki (アントニオ猪木, Antonio Inoki), a homage to fellow professional wrestler Antonino Rocca. Inoki is a twelve-time professional wrestling world champion, notably being the first IWGP Heavyweight Champion and the first Japanese WWF Heavyweight Champion – a reign not officially recognized by WWE.

Benny Urquidez (born June 20, 1952) is an American kickboxer, martial arts choreographer and actor. Nicknamed "The Jet", Urquidez was a non-contact karate competitor who later pioneered full-contact fighting in the United States. He made the transition from point to full-contact karate in 1974, the year of its inception in the US, frequently fighting in bouts where the rules were ambiguous and contrasts in styles were dramatic. Urquidez is also known for once holding the rare achievement of six world titles in five different weight divisions, and remained largely undefeated in his 27-year career. His only loss came in a Muay Thai match which was shrouded in controversy, as Urquidez had only agreed to a no-decision exhibition, a clause which was ignored when the fight had ended.

Morio Higaonna (東恩納 盛男, Higaonna Morio, born December 25, 1938) is a prominent Okinawan karate practitioner who is the founder and former Chief Instructor of the International Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate-do Federation (IOGKF). He is a holder of the highest rank in Goju-ryu karate, 10th dan. Higaonna has written several books on Goju-ryu karate, including Traditional Karate-do: Okinawa Goju Ryu (1985) and The history of Karate: Okinawan Goju Ryu (2001). Martial arts scholar Donn Draeger (1922–1982) reportedly once described him as "the most dangerous man in Japan in a real fight."

Jhoon Goo Rhee (January 7, 1932 – April 30, 2018), commonly known as Jhoon Rhee or Grandmaster Jhoon Rhee, was a South Korean master of taekwondo who was widely recognized as the 'Father of American Taekwondo' for introducing this martial art to the United States of America since arriving in the 1950s. He was ranked 10th dan.

Glover Lucas Teixeira (Portuguese pronunciation: born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Teixeira is a former member of the Brazilian National Wrestling Team and has competed in the WEC, Impact FC, PFC, and Shooto. He is the second oldest UFC champion in history behind Randy Couture and the oldest first time champion in UFC history. As of May 2, 2022 he is #8 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings.

Hirokazu Kanazawa (金澤 弘和, Kanazawa Hirokazu, 3 May 1931 – 8 December 2019) was a Japanese teacher of Shotokan karate. He was the Chief instructor and President of the Shotokan Karate-Do International Federation, an organisation he founded after he left the Japan Karate Association (JKA). Kanazawa was ranked 10th dan in karate.

Carlos Gracie (September 14, 1902 – October 7, 1994) along with his younger brother Hélio Gracie, and fellow students Luis Franca and Oswaldo Fadda are credited with being the primary developer of modern Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is primarily based on knowledge from Mitsuyo Maeda, widely considered to be the martial-arts patriarch of the Gracie Family. Carlos Gracie acquired his knowledge of Jiu-Jitsu by studying in Belem under Maeda and his students. As he taught the techniques to his brothers, he created a martial arts family with Hélio and with other members of the Gracie family who provided key contributions to the style.

William Ewart Fairbairn (28 February 1885 – 20 June 1960) was a British Royal Marine and police officer. He developed hand-to-hand combat methods for the Shanghai Police during the interwar period, as well as for the allied special forces during World War II. He created his own fighting system known as Defendu. Notably, this included innovative pistol shooting techniques and the development of the Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife.

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Masaaki Hatsumi (初見 良昭, Hatsumi Masaaki, born December 2, 1931), formerly Yoshiaki Hatsumi, is the founder of the Bujinkan Organization and is the former Togakure-ryū Soke (Grandmaster). He currently resides and teaches in Noda, Chiba, Japan.