Chairman of the Technical Committee of the World Karate Federation (WKF)
Con Kassis Biography
Con Kassis was born in Greece, and specificaly in Ioannina city, on April 17, 1959. His family moved in Australia when he was 4 years old, though he always kept in touch with his birthplace, which he visited often.
He first became interested in Karate at the age of 15, when he started to practice Shotokan Karate-Do occasionally. It wasn’t until the age of 20 that he decided to take up Shitoryu Karate-Do. He became so devoted to learning, that rarely a day would go by without practice.
In 1982, Con began to teach, and in 1987 he was introduced to Kenei Mabuni, an event which changed his life dramatically.
Master Mabuni (10th Dan) decided to take Con as his personal student. Under his guidance, Con’s understanding of Karate began to mature significantly. At the age of 35, Con became the World Karate Federation’s youngest Kata Judge – at a time when only 25 officials in the world held this status, the highest possible for competition karate.
His passion for teaching grew immensely, and his achievements were to continue. He has produced countless state, national, and international champions in competition, and has become one of the most respected Karate teachers, not only in Australia, but around the world.
He held the rank of 8th Dan “Shihan” in Shito-ryu and served as Vice President of the World Shito-ryu Karate-do Federation (WSKF) and recently held the position of Counselor in the above Federation.
He devoted his life in the particular martial art and had a stable and relentless passion for its competition part, that he shared with the world, since he had mastered all the aspects of the art, as a competitor, instructor, referee and official.
Con Kassis has played a very important role in the development of Karate in Oceania and held several high positions in taking desicions in the Oceania Karate Federation (OKF).
He was very important and his specialisation in Karate has been essential for the World Karate Federation (WKF).
He was also Chairman of the Technical Committee of the World Karate Federation (WKF) and a member of Sports and Rules and Ranking Commissions, while in the past he had been a member and later on 2010, he got the position of Chairman of WKF Referee Committee.
It is worth noting that in the history of the World Karate Federation since its inception, he was the first non-Japanese to gain the position of Chairman of the Technical Commission and the only one that served as a Chairman not only of the Referee Committee but of the Technical Committee in World Karate Federation (WKF) as well.
Undeniably he was a well known figure of Karate in the whole world.
He also worked very hard for the integration of Karate as an official sport in Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Karate Master Con Kassis has left this life on June 7, 2022, after a long disease.
WKF President Antonio Espinos said:
“Con Kassis’s passing is a tremendous loss for the WKF and the whole Karate family. His outstanding contribution to the progress of Karate has been unparalleled; so much so, that he is one of the key actors in making Karate the advanced and spectacular discipline that is today. Moreover, he was a dear friend to many of us. He was kind, caring, and a wonderful human being through and through. He perfectly represented the many values of our sport, and he will be truly missed”.
