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by Floyd Egner
Publisher, Tropical Breeze
Dennis Kelly offers a real-life "Rocky"
story, an unlikely martial arts champion who has retired only to
return to be a champion again and again. In fact, he is negotiating
to produced the screenplay of his story, perhaps with Patrick
Swayze starring as the dancing, martial arts champion who also is a
certified sports nutrionist and author.
Meanwhile, for those who don't want to
wait for the movie, he offers workshops called "Wisdom of the
Ages," in which he and his wife Barbara Marville-Kelly share not
only his inspirational story, but information based on medical
documentation and science. The next workshop is Saturday, Sept. 22
at, 1401 Mission Hills Blvd.,
Clearwater.
"The whole concept is that we can get
better as we get older," Kelly said recently. At age 69, he offers
himself as proof. His wife Barbara notes that he is competing at an
age where most martial artists would have given up fighting in
competition. He is the oldest champion ever in the 50 and older
fighting division.
He first won a championship in 1977. He
began studying Tai Kwon Doe karate at age 35 after his father died
at age 53. Kelly said he was so overweight he could not see his own
shoes. With high blood pressure, too much stress in his life and
lousy physical shape, he realized he would be lucky to live as long
as his father had.
A regimen of nutrition and exercise turned
his life around to the point that in 1977 and again in 1978 he won
Henry Chow's National Karate Championships at Madison Square
Garden, New York, fighting in the men's Senior (35 and older)
division.
Physical changes were only the beginning,
however. He said a single incident taught him how much more there
was to learn. Cocky and proud of his accomplishment, he brought his
trophy to practice with his instructor, Mr. Lee. "I'd fought the
world's best and nobody had scored a point against me," Kelly
said.
"You should not bring trophy," his
65-year-old instructor said. "You fight me now. You no blink. You
hit well, please."
A moment later, Kelly said he found
himself on his back looking up at his smiling instructor, hearing
the rattle of plaques falling off the wall he had bounced off of.
That was only a quarter power kick, the humbled champion was told.
A half power kick would have hurt; a full power kick would have
killed.
That was the beginning of Kelly's
understanding of "the soft side" of martial arts, the meditation
and mental exercises that produce masters after long study.
"Now I've become the master. Now it is my
responsibility to give others what he gave me," Kelly said. Even
now, when his former instructor is in his 80s, Kelly said he would
not dare fight him. "He gave me humility," he said.
Kelly presents his workshop in conjunction
with Barbara, who was a host on Home Shopping Network for 15 years,
but now has retired to work full-time with Kelly as he presents his
message of healthy living. They met, of course, in a gym.
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