HYDERABAD, August 31, 2026: Grandmaster Hanshi Shaswat Kumar, founder of Senkoukai Karate, has issued a Global Open Challenge to eligible Karate Grandmasters, official Country Chiefs and senior representatives officially authorised to represent their respective karate systems.
The proposed challenge calls for a Full-Contact “Last-Man-Standing” fight and is aimed specifically at senior and officially recognised representatives of karate styles. According to the announcement, the challenge is not intended for ordinary students or individual practitioners.
The proposed contest is scheduled to take place in Hyderabad, Telangana, on September 30, 2026, subject to formal acceptance by an eligible participant and the completion of competition, medical and safety requirements.
Hanshi Shaswat Kumar said the initiative is intended to provide an international platform where representatives of different karate traditions can demonstrate their technical ability, physical preparation, discipline, fighting spirit and combat skills.
The Global Open Challenge is addressed to Karate Grandmasters, official Country Chiefs and senior representatives authorised to represent a karate system at the country level. Any participant seeking to accept the challenge would be required to establish their official status and authority to represent their respective karate system.
The initiative is being presented as an opportunity for Senkoukai Karate, an Indian-origin combat-oriented karate system, to demonstrate its capabilities alongside representatives of other karate traditions.
According to the proposed format, the contest would differ from a conventional points-based karate competition. The fight would continue until one competitor is unable to safely continue under the approved rules and the referee determines that the contest should end.
A proposed 10-second knockdown rule would require a competitor who has been knocked down or fallen to demonstrate the ability to continue within 10 seconds of the referee’s count. Failure to do so could result in the competitor being declared defeated.
The proposed rules may also permit locking techniques, subject to final safety regulations. The final rules regarding permitted techniques, protective equipment, medical supervision, referee procedures and participant-safety requirements would need to be formally established before any officially conducted contest.
Hanshi Shaswat Kumar is the founder of Senkoukai Karate, an independent Indian-origin karate system with an emphasis on practical combat training, self-defence and combat-oriented martial arts.
Recent media coverage has also highlighted his martial-arts achievements. Telangana Today reported in August 2026 that Kumar achieved recognition for holding a 100-kg dumbbell with one hand for one continuous minute, describing it as his eighth world record.
The Global Open Challenge is now being positioned as an opportunity to present Senkoukai Karate before an international martial-arts audience and bring eligible representatives of different karate traditions onto one platform.
The proposed challenge is scheduled for September 30, 2026, in Hyderabad, Telangana. However, the event remains subject to formal acceptance, participant eligibility, final competition rules, medical clearance, safety regulations and other required event arrangements.
Different Styles. Different Traditions. One International Platform.
