Winsted-Lester Prairie Journal, March 30,
1998 Winsted-Lester Prairie Journal, March 30,
1998Louis Stifter, instructor of the Winsted Karate Club, placed first in the kumite competition at the 26th Annual National Karate Championship in Riverside, Calif.
Stifter also won first place in kumite in 1993 and 1997.
Kumite is non-contact fighting using punching, kicking, and striking, and is judged by five judges who award the match a score.
In the competition, the match was tied at two minutes and went into overtime. Stifter won by one point.
Stifter also competed in the individual kata and team kumite.
Kata is a pre-arranged kicking, blocking, and punching done in a sequence. It is scored similar to gymnastics.