Our lineage
Masters & lineage
Our school honors the masters whose teaching reaches us today.
Father of modern karate
Gichin Funakoshi
1868 – 1957Founder of Shotokan style, who brought karate from Okinawa to mainland Japan and to the world.
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Founder of the ITKF
Hidetaka Nishiyama
1928 – 2008Direct student of Funakoshi, founder of the International Traditional Karate Federation. Brought traditional karate to the United States and the world.
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Founder of ISKA
Vincent Cruz
1937-2015Student of Nishiyama, founder of the International San Ten Karate Association in 1979. A pillar of traditional karate in the Americas.
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The bridge to Venezuela
Katsuya Ishiyama
8th DanStudent of Cruz and teacher of Zambrano. His teaching was the direct link that brought the ISKA lineage to Venezuela; Dojo Ishiyama bears his name.
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Hanshi — Director of USKTV
Ramón Zambrano
9th DanHeir to the lineage in Venezuela. Director of Dojo Ishiyama in San Cristóbal, Táchira, and current guide of USKTV.
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