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Mike Carlson of Augusta Georgia takes charge at the August, 2000
ISCF WORLD
TITLE EVENT Event in Georgia, USA.
At right Carlson holds up the hand of the first
ISCF World
Champion, Din Thomas of Orlando, Florida,
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(L)
Carlson presents Richmond County Narcotics Investigator James Tredore a
plaque for his, "courage, sacrifice, and dedication in showing the
true spirit and integrity of the martial artist in his service to the community"
at 2002 ISCF Winter
Wars Event, in Augusta Georgia, USA.
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"Georgia
Promoter's Continue To Work Together With An Eye Towards The Future By Cal Cooper

Comment From the President "This is yet another
example of the tremendous spirit of cooperation I have seen in Georgia with
their promoters working together. It is also one more example of where the focus
of TEAMWORK, as stressed within the IKF &
ISCF
organizations has proved to be the foundation of success." Steve Fossum, IKF &
ISCF
President.
Georgia,
USA: On January 19th, 2002, Georgia fight promoters (Shown above
- third from left - ) gathered in Augusta Georgia for a meeting hosted by
the International Kickboxing Federation and its subsidiary, the International
Sport Combat Federation. The meeting was led by Mike
Carlson at his Augusta Martial Arts Academy. Carlson
is the Assistant District Attorney known best to MMA fans as the man who got
their sport sanctioned in Georgia. Also in attendance were SFO and Gauntlet
Trials promoter Matthew Waller, Valdosta
promoter James Corbett, Douglasville
promoters Mark Maske and
Mike Crocker, Atlanta Battle at the
Brewery promoter Lane Collyer (No
longer with the IKF or ISCF due to rules and regulation violations),
Augusta's Eddie Singleton, and
fighter/ISCF referee Cam McHargue. Atlanta
Fight Party promoter Brett Moses also had
a representative present. All have been associated with Kickboxing and/or MMA
promotions and have supported the efforts of the IKF and ISCF to bring
regulation to the fighting sports in Georgia.
Since Georgia law states that MMA can take place in the state if sanctioned
by the ISCF,
the seemingly casual meeting was an important moment in the development of the
sport in Georgia. Likewise, since Georgia is one of only a handful of states to
have recognized MMA in a legal manner, the gathering will ultimately effect the
entire sport of MMA in the United States. In the past, MMA in Georgia has
always been a mixed bag. A multitude of promoters have run events of various
sizes in the state, and, left to their own devices, very few have done a very
good job. After the regulation of events began in 2001 (Georgia Legitimizes MMA
Competition), Georgia went a long way towards establishing itself
as a stronghold of MMA, and many promoters from around the US expressed interest
in promoting in the Peach State and being legitimately sanctioned by the
ISCF. Mike Carlson is tickled pink. The meeting on the
19th was for dealing with the practical matters. Events are scheduled for every
month for the first, half of 2001, most of which will originate from within the
state. Many other events, which are in the planning stages, do not yet have
dates. The meeting established a calendar for Georgia, which allows promoters to
have a reasonable time period to promote without conflicting with another event
in their area. This creates a uniquely promoter friendly environment in the
entire Union. No other state law creates such a situation. The meeting also
established the first ISCF fighter database, which will initially be
comprised of fighters who compete in and around the South. Individuals were
appointed various responsibilities, such as maintaining the "Fighter Pool",
and writing testing questions for judges and referees according to established
ISCF
and IKF rules.
Because of meetings like this, Georgia and the
South East USA has continued to be the most sanctioned region in the World for
the ISCF
Events.
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