Ken Sickles

Sempai, Shodan, competitor, and assistant instructor at Buck's School of the Tiger in Peoria, Arizona.

Ken Sickles began karate in the 1970s, trained in Okinawa during his Air Force service, and later studied Kyokushin and Aiki-Jujitsu in Arizona.

Title

Sempai

Rank

Shodan in Kyokushin

Started Training

Kenpo Karate in 1974

Role

Assistant instructor at Buck's School of the Tiger, Peoria, Arizona

Training Path

Ken started taking Kenpo Karate in 1974. He later entered the Air Force and studied Shorinryu in Okinawa until he was transferred.

He began studying Kyokushin Karate in 2002, received his Shodan, and also studied Aiki-Jujitsu.

Competition

Ken entered open tournaments and semi-full-contact events. At age 54, he fought in the 2010 bare-knuckle full-contact Kyokushin tournament and took third place.

He also competed at the 2010 Battle of the Desert in Elko, Nevada, in a senior division with both fighters over 50 years of age.