Local martial arts students head to World Kickboxing Championships
During the meeting, Supervisor Jerry Boothe (Courthouse) voiced his support and said, “Martial arts isn't about the fighting, it is the character building. You are helping create better citizens.”
At the Floyd County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, the Board recognized two brothers and students of Floyd’s Buffalo Mountain Martial Arts (BMMA) who are headed to the World Kickboxing Association's (WKA) World Championships.
Alongside their father Michael, BMMA Head Coach James Henry accompanied Santino Lupacchino, 14, and Sebastian Lupacchino, 12, to the meeting where they shared their accomplishments and showed the board medals from the national competition.
The boys, who are from Endicott in Franklin County, have been practicing martial arts since 2019 and have been kickboxing for almost four years. They’ve earned many accolades, including the World Muay Thai Organization Championship and the International Sports Kickboxing Association Championship, respectively.
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Their dad said that the boys reaching world championship level fights is “an awesome opportunity to show how hard they work.” The WKA World Championship fight is set for October in Maryland.
“I'm just trying to set them in the right place so that they can actually become coaches like Coach Henry and actually teach the community. Because we're going to be staying in Franklin County for the rest of our lives, and these boys need to contribute, too,” Michael said. “With the training that they have, I think it's a big benefit for the community that kids in the future have coaches like them to help them become champions as well.”
During the meeting, Supervisor Jerry Boothe (Courthouse) voiced his support and said, “Martial arts isn't about the fighting, it is the character building. You are helping create better citizens.”
Chairman Joe Turman (Burks Fork) said that he is "proud of these young guys," a sentiment echoed by County Administrator Kim Chiddo.
BMMA works with the Floyd County Parks and Recreation Department to train students in Mixed Martial Arts, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Their four-year anniversary will be Nov. 1, but Coach Henry has a much longer history of doing MMA and teaching others, including Floyd’s Daniel Lowry.
Lowry started practicing martial arts when he was 12, he said, and he trained until he was about 25. He trained under Coach Henry (who was about 18 when Lowry started), and traveled to India when he was 15 for the world championship.
“Then after that, we went to Pyongyang, North Korea, in 2000,” he explained. “I won a medal there as well and got the American Flag raised in North Korea. That was pretty cool.” He noted that the last tournament he was in was in 2003 in Greece.
Lowry said that getting into martial arts at around age 12 is a great thing for kids because it helps build their confidence, instill a good work ethic, and more. The tenets when he was training were courtesy, integrity, indomitable spirit, and perseverance.
“I think it's helped me throughout my life, keeping those tenets that I learned when I was a kid,” he said.
Coach Henry said that the gym has a big reach in the community and brings together students both locally and across the region. He said BMMA is looking to add some extra programs, including wrestling as they already work with at least one Floyd County High School wrestler who also practices MMA. Henry noted that BMMA is also working on a Rock Steady Boxing program, which is for seniors and is designed to help counter Parkinson’s Disease.
Lowry said he has “seen a lot of growth (of BMMA) in the past year or two, and I think it's going to continue to grow,” Lowry said. “Getting the word out there about the program I think is a big deal because a lot of times people want to get their kids into it, but they don't know that we have this program.”
Anyone interested in learning more about BMMA should visit their website, www.buffalomountainmartialarts.com, or their Facebook page, “Buffalo Mountain Martial Arts - HQ.” Call (540) 230-2828 or email buffalomma.1@gmail.com. Sponsorships are welcome to help support the Lupacchino brothers' trip in October.
Learn more about BMMA’s partnership with Floyd County Parks and Recreation at www.floydcountyparksandrec.org/buffalo-mountain-martial-arts.
Click to enlarge images. Photos Courtesy of Rafel Zabik via BMMA
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