Tomasz Kucharzewski (August 13, 1968 – March 8, 2008) was a Polish-Canadian martial artist. Kucharzewski initially gained fame while fighting competitively in

Kyokushin kaikan is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Jap ...

and Shidōkan styles of karate. Though greatly successful in karate, he became more involved in kickboxing during his later career. A dominating force in the ring, Kucharzewski was described by the veteran karate instructor and journalist Roger Salick as "indestructible" following his fourth (of five) International Shidōkan Championship wins.Salick, Roger
Shidokan's Slugfests Impress Gracie
, Shidokan.com. Accessed December 23, 2008. He held notable victories over Glaube Feitosa and international karate champion Gerry Marketos.

Early life and karate career

Born in Częstochowa, Kucharzewski began training in karate at the age of 14. He had won three

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

national titles in

karate and one European title by the time he was 20. He moved to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1991 and settled in

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the southe ...

, from where he fought in an estimated 300 fights.Late fighter was "Happy-go-lucky"
, ''

Windsor Star The ''Windsor Star'' is a daily newspaper based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Postmedia Network, it is published Tuesdays through Saturdays. History The paper began as the weekly ''Windsor Record'' in 1888, changing its name to the ''Bor ...

'', March 12, 2008. Accessed December 23, 2008. He achieved his greatest competitive success at this time, including two first-place wins in the annual US Sabaki Challenge and five consecutive gold medals at the International Shidokan Championships. At the 1994 US International Shidokan Championships, Kucharzewski powered through opponent Christopher Harrison and knocked out Alain Grosdesormeaux with a knee strike en route to reaching the finals. The championship ended up being awarded to him without a fight, as his opponent Dontel Fleming forfeited the match in favor of hospitalization after experiencing concussion-like symptoms.Salick, Roger

Salick's Karate & Martial Arts. Accessed December 16, 2019. The following year, Kucharzewski endured a bizarre, disqualification (sports), DQ-bound single round against Soneybourne Ali before knocking out international karate champion Gerry Marketos and claiming his fourth shidokan title in a hard-fought match against Akio Kobayashi.

K-1

With a substantial martial arts career already behind him, Kucharzewski accepted an invitation to K-1 - the era’s premier kickboxing organization. His initial bouts proved fruitless: he met Jean-Claude Leuyer and

Lloyd van Dams Lloyd Daniël van Dams (5 March 1972 – 29 December 2021), also known as The Tornado, was a Surinamese-born Dutch heavyweight kickboxer. He was a Dutch, European, and World Muay Thai champion. Known for his durability, van Dams was never kno ...

at the K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 and K-1 Braves '99 events, and both defeated him with low kicks which injured his left knee. He fared considerably better at the K-1 USA Championships 2000 tournament, using substantial boxing skills to score TKO victories over American fighter Jason Johnson and future

K-1 World Grand Prix K-1 World Grand Prix, also known as the K-1 World GP, is an elimination kickboxing tournament that has been held annually since 1993 by the K-1 organization. Each year, K-1 holds various 16-men, 8-match grand prix style tournaments throughout the ...

finalist Glaube Feitosa. Despite a strong first round in the finals wherein he stunned opponent Andrei Dudko with a spinning back kick, Kucharzewski found his left leg under attack again and went to the canvas following two powerful low kicks, whereupon he was unable to meet the 10-count. Kucharzewski fought twice more for K-1, his final match coming in the K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Preliminary USA quarterfinals. After being pressed by opponent

Duke Roufus Jeffrey Ryan "Duke" Roufus (born February 19, 1970) is an American former kickboxer and head coach of the Roufusport based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. He is a well-known striking coach in North America. Career Duke Roufus started t ...

throughout the first round, he suffered two knockdowns and the referee ended the fight.

Death

During the later years of his life, Kucharzewski suffered a knee injury and ceased being as active in training and competition. He was found dead in his downtown

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

apartment by family members on March 8, 2008. Although an autopsy was performed, the cause of death was not immediately known. Doctors claimed that his death could have been caused by

cardiac arrhythmia Arrhythmias, also known as cardiac arrhythmias, heart arrhythmias, or dysrhythmias, are irregularities in the heartbeat, including when it is too fast or too slow. A resting heart rate that is too fast – above 100 beats per minute in adults ...

Personal life

Kucharzewski was known by his contemporaries for his calm and friendly demeanor. Albert Mady - his coach of 16 years - described him as "happy-go-lucky".Windsor kickboxer fought at elite level
, ''

'', March 13, 2008. Accessed December 31, 2008. At his time of death, worked at the Chromeshield

steelmaking Steelmaking is the process of producing steel from iron ore and carbon/or scrap. In steelmaking, impurities such as nitrogen, silicon, phosphorus, sulfur and excess carbon (the most important impurity) are removed from the sourced iron, and alloy ...

company in

. He was unmarried and had no children.

Titles

Karate *1988 Polish National Kyokushin Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1988 3rd European Oyama Cup (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1989 Polish National Kyokushin Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1990 Polish National Kyokushin Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1991 Canadian National Kykokushin Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1992 Sabaki Challenge US Open (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1992 US International Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1993 Sabaki Challenge US Open (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1993 US International Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 2nd place *1994 Sabaki Challenge US Open (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1994 US International Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1994 Tokyo World Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1995 US International Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1996 US International Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 1st place *1998 Australian Open Shidokan Championships (Heavyweight) - 2nd place Kickboxing *1999

KICK A kick is a physical Strike (attack), strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee (strike), ...

World Super Heavyweight Muay Thai Champion * K-1 USA Championships 2000 – Runner-up *2003 Tales of Pain Heavyweight Tournament - Runner-up Amateur boxing * 1993 Ontario Provincial Heavyweight Champion

Kickboxing record (incomplete)

, - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2003-06-28 , , Loss , , align=left, Carter Williams , , Tales of Pain - Final , ,

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United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, , TKO (Doctor stoppage) , , 1 , , , , , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2003-06-28 , , Win , , align=left, Giuseppe de Natale , , Tales of Pain - Semifinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , , , , , , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2003-06-28 , , Win , , align=left, Lane Collyer , , Tales of Pain - Quarterfinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , TKO (Corner stoppage) , , , , , , , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2001-05-05 , , Loss , , align=left,

, , K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Preliminary USA Quarterfinals , ,

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, , TKO (2 Knockdowns/Punches) , , 1 , , 2:26 , , 69-8 , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2000-10-09 , , Loss , , align=left,

Hiromi Amada Hiromi Amada ( ja, 天田ヒロミ; born May 10, 1973) is a retired Japanese heavyweight kickboxer and boxer from Gunma, Japan. A staple in the K-1 heavyweight division from 1999 to 2007, the company considered him one of its most ...

, , K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Fukuoka Quarterfinals , , Fukuoka, Japan , , KO (Right Cross) , , 1 , , 1:49 , , 69-7 , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2000-08-05 , , Loss , , align=left, Andrei Dudko , , K-1 USA Championships 2000 Finals , ,

, , KO (Right Low Kick) , , 2 , , 1:25 , , 69-6 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2000-08-05 , , Win , , align=left, Glaube Feitosa , , K-1 USA Championships 2000 Semifinals , ,

, , TKO (Referee Stoppage/Punches) , , 1 , , 2:03 , , 69-5 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2000-08-05 , , Win , , align=left, Jason Johnson , , K-1 USA Championships 2000 Quarterfinals , ,

, , TKO (2 Knockdowns/Right Cross) , , 1 , , 0:56 , , 68-5 , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 1999-06-20 , , Loss , , align=left,

, , K-1 Braves '99 Quarterfinals , , Fukuoka, Japan , , KO (Right Low Kick) , , 2 , , 1:48 , , 61-4 , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 1998-08-07 , , Loss , , align=left, Jean-Claude Leuyer , , K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 Quarterfinals , ,

, , TKO (Corner Stoppage/Right Low Kick) , , 1 , , 3:00 , , , - , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

Karate record (incomplete)

, - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1996-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, Shuji Abe , , 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , TKO (Referee Stoppage/Knee) , , 2 , , , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1996-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, , , 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , , , , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1996-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, , , 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterfinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , , , , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1995-10-00 , , Win , , align=left, Akio Kobayashi , , 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , , , , , , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1995-10-00 , , Win , , align=left, Gerry Marketos , , 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , KO (Knee) , , 1 , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1995-10-00 , , Win , , align=left, Soneybourne Ali , , 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterifinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , DQ , , 1 , , , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1994-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, Dontel Fleming , , 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , Forfeiture (Unable to fight) , , 1 , , 0:00 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1994-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, Alain Grosdesormeaux , , 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , KO (Knee) , , 1 , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1994-00-00 , , Win , , align=left, Christopher Harrison , , 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterfinals , ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, , KO (Knee) , , 1 , , , - , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 1993-04-17 , , Loss , , align=left, Patrick Smith , , 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Finals , ,

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, , Decision , , , , , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1993-04-17 , , Win , , align=left, Michael Gallant , , 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Semifinals , ,

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 1 , , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 1993-04-17 , , Win , , align=left, Jay Pommrehn , , 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Quarterfinals , ,

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 2 , , , - , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

References

External links

Official website

Profile
at MMAuniverse.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Kucharzewski, Tomasz 1968 births 2008 deaths Canadian male karateka Polish male karateka Canadian male kickboxers Heavyweight kickboxers Martial artists from Ontario Polish emigrants to Canada Polish male kickboxers Sportspeople from Częstochowa Sportspeople from Windsor, Ontario