Photos by Jenn Viola
It took nearly 30 years , but Pittsburgh martial arts promoter Bill Viola Jr . recently reunited with Arnold Schwarzenegger at the Arnold Sports Festival that took place in Columbus , Ohio , Feb . 29 – March 3 . The festival featured more than 20,000 athletes from 80 + nations in world-class competitions . Over the past three decades , the Arnold Sports Festival has evolved into the world ’ s largest multisport competition and expo . Pittsburgh native Sensei Bill Viola Jr . has been there since martial arts was introduced in the 1990s , and this year things came full circle .
Viola was a director for combat sports at this year ’ s festival , overseeing some of the top sport karate athletes in America . A group from his Pittsburgh dojo traveled to compete , including his son ( Will ) and daughter ( Gabby ) who both took top honors in their divisions . However , it was a 22-year-old alum of Norwin High School who stole the show . Cameron Klos , one of Viola ’ s most promising black belts , was able to win the Overall Grand Championship in kata ( forms ) and kumite ( sparring ), a feat that earned him a one-on-one live performance just for Arnold Schwarzenegger .
Klos says , “ I never dreamed that Arnold would be my personal judge . The entire place stopped , and all eyes and cameras were on me . It was surreal .” Arnold called Cameron , “ A true champion and inspiration to youth .”
It was déjà vu for Sensei Bill who had the same encounter with Arnold over 25 years ago . In 1998 , Viola first met Arnold Schwarzenegger after the Allegheny Shotokan Karate competition team was honored as # 1 in the United States . His team performed on the Veterans Memorial stage in Columbus , Ohio , for Schwarzenegger .
Backstage , Viola expressed his dream to bring a similar concept to Pittsburgh , and Arnold encouraged
Schwarzenegger and Viola in 1998 .
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I never dreamed that Arnold would be my personal judge . The entire place stopped , and all eyes and cameras were on me . It was surreal .” Arnold called Cameron , “ A true champion and inspiration to youth .”
him to create his own production company , Kumite Classic Entertainment , in 1999 . Viola writes about this experience in his bestselling book “ CommonSensei ,” a life skills memoir he wrote last year .
Over the last two decades , Viola ’ s Kumite Classic and Pittsburgh Fitness Expo would become the largest multisport convention in Western Pennsylvania , hosting 100,000 square feet of action sports at the Monroeville Expo Mart , Monroeville Convention Center , and the Downtown Hilton ( now Wyndham Grand ). The Kumite became the mecca for martial arts with a “ who ’ s who ” guest list of Olympians and professional athletes , showcasing everyone from Lynn Swann and Franco Harris to Kurt Angle and Royce Gracie .
Viola was recently appointed chairman of WAKO USA Tatami ( World Association of Kickboxing Organizations ) and is currently in negotiations to bring USA Kickboxing to the Arnold Sports Festival in 2025 . It is the only U . S . organization in the sport of kickboxing to have International Olympic Committee and American Olympic Committee recognition . The athletes compete at the highest of levels , qualifying in national championship tournaments to earn their spots on the team to compete internationally at the Pan-American Championships , World Games and the World Combat Games . WAKO USA serves as the gateway to the Olympics . n
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