S.C. Black Belt Hall of Famers named to elite Karate governing body in Texas

Martial artists earn new laurels as senior leaders in tier-one Texas “fight club”

COLUMBIA, SC, UNITED STATES, October 6, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- South Carolina Karate legends Bruce Brutschy and Keith Vitali have been named to the elite American Karate Black Belt Association’s (AKBBA) High Dan Board, which is the AKBBA’s martial arts governing and ranking body for AKBBA members worldwide. The Texas-based AKBBA High Dan Board is composed of 13 members all 8th-degree or higher black belts, eleven of whom hail from the state of Texas: The exceptions being Brutschy and Vitali.

Brutschy, a 10th-degree black belt, is from West Columbia, S.C. and Vitali, also a 10th-degree black belt and a native of Columbia, S.C., resides in Atlanta, Georgia.

An accomplished tournament fighter and S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame inductee, Brutschy is a member of South Carolina's High Dan Board as is Vitali and S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame President and Hall of Fame inductee Mike Genova.

Having also served on Texas’ AKBBA High Dan Board since 2023, Brutschy was elected vice chair of the AKBBA High Dan Board in September. Vitali was named to the AKBBA board also in September.

A former #1-ranked U.S. karate tournament champion, S.C. Black Belt Hall of Famer, and one of Black Belt magazine’s top 10 fighters of all time, Vitali is a Hollywood martial arts movie star, stuntman, stunt director, and fight coordinator, as well as a writer and producer.

“These two martial arts greats have been instrumental in the establishment of South Carolina as a veritable mecca of Karate culture just as is the state of Texas,” said Dr. Tom Mullikin, himself an accomplished martial artist, 6th-degree black belt, acclaimed global expedition leader and a S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame inductee. “For them to now be an integral part of the AKBBA leadership speaks to their national reputations, and in the case of Vitali, worldwide repute.”

John Liles, a 9th-degree black belt and executive director of the AKBBA, agrees.

“The American Karate Black Belt Association is proud to have Bruce Brutschy serve as our vice chairman and we are also proud to welcome Keith Vitali as our newest boardmember,” said Liles. “These two men are very accomplished martial artists and businessmen. We are excited as we know and appreciate the value these two men bring to our organization.”

The AKBBA was founded in 1964 by Grandmaster Allen Steen, who holds a 10th-degree black belt in Taekwondo. Steen who trained under the legendary Grandmaster Jhoon Rhee, “father of American Taekwondo,” is himself an international champion and widely recognized as the “father of Texas Karate.”

– For additional information about the AKBBA, visit https://akbba.com/.

W. Thomas Smith Jr.
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